Haibane Ranma: Redone
by Xilore
Summary: It's been a week since Rakka hatched and things were settling down until another cocoon was found in the courtyard! But while that one hatched to anxious Haibane, another one was found outside Old Home and hatched alone. Two Haibane at once is unusual, but not as unusual as the one of the pair that has fading memories of a life before! Remake of the original.
1. Chapter 1

Haibane Ranma: Redone

_"__They say that when you are in the womb you can hear what goes on around you. The voices and the music you hear will influence what kind of child you will become. But when you are reborn into a new life, without the nurturing bond of a mother connecting you, your greatest influence is found only in your dreams." - Author Unknown_

It was a brisk early morning in the late summer when Reki noticed it. Within the courtyard of Old Home, standing bold as you please, was a large cocoon. It was positioned next to an old fountain that had seen better days, but luckily was not otherwise disturbed by it's presence. It was a sight that was of great interest to Reki, but not something new in or of itself. Reki had seen the like before many times. This cocoon had been here for nearly a week, growing steadily every day. When she and the others of Old Home had first noticed it growing there had been quite a buzz about it. The appearance of this cocoon would mark two in the last month, and that was not common anywhere that they knew of. Most of the time there wouldn't be a new cocoon appearing more than every few months, though on occasion there would be a few from both Old Home and Abandoned Factory – another place one could find the cocoons growing in. No, it wasn't the presence of the cocoon that Reki noticed. The cocoon had started turning from white to charcoal gray.

In a few minutes time, the whole courtyard was abuzz with excitement. Several people, mostly teenage girls but with a smattering of adolescent boys and girls as well, had gathered to watch. Very rarely were the young ones allowed to watch a cocoon hatch, but as this one had appeared outside, which hadn't happened at anytime during Reki's stay in Old Home, the younger spectators couldn't easily be kept from watching.

"It's been so long since it first appeared," one of the older girls said. "Do they always take so long?"

"I don't know, Rakka. Remember, you only arrived two weeks ago and we didn't know yours was there until a few hours before you hatched. Most of the time we don't find cocoons until a day at most before that time." The speaker was younger than Rakka, if not by much. Reki looked at them both.

Rakka was younger than herself, but still older than the other girl, Kuu. Rakka had light brown, messy hair and wore a white dress that ran to her knees with a neckerchief and collar that made a square shape in the back. Conversely, Kuu wore a green-sleeved white shirt and blue shorts and sported a blonde bob hairstyle. Reki smiled as Kuu started bouncing on her feet in excitement.

"Do you think this one will join the Young Feathers? It's a lot smaller than yours was, Rakka."

"It does look pretty small, Kuu. Mine felt much bigger from the inside."

"At least yours took up most of a room," a third girl said. "Cleaning up that small space was tiring, but not like trying to get **this** place looking presentable for a hatching."

Rakka nodded at this. The courtyard was not enormous by any means, but it still was much bigger than any of the rooms inside where most cocoons were found. It was about the size of a small house, and paved with cobblestone paths. In the southwest stood a clock tower that did not work, and the southeastern corner housed the main entryway into and out of the area. Posted inside the entryway was a cork board used for notices and a line of hooks upon which hung small wooden tags with names on them. The names were all painted white, signifying that everyone was at Old Home. While not complicated to clean up, it was still a large area.

Rakka returned her focus to the cocoon standing next to the fountain in the center. It was about four feet tall and four feet wide, making a spherical shape that was crisscrossed with roots and veins. The roots dug a bit into the cobblestones disturbing them and gave the cocoon the look of an eyeball staring up into the sky. The Young Feathers had been the first to comment on that and their reaction had varied from fascinated to disturbed at the comparison.

Reki stepped up next to the cocoon and placed her hand on it. She could feel a very faint vibration from within. "It won't be long now. The shell is hardening and it feels like our new friend is getting ready to meet us." Reki brushed a strand of her long black hair over her ear and tried to take a drag from her cigarette, forgetting that in light of the situation she had not lit it. Her attempt at a cool looking move devolved to a cough she only barely failed to suppress.

**Crack**

The sound was quiet but, compared to how quiet everyone else became upon hearing it, it might have been the sound of shattering plates. The youngest spectators were suddenly crawling over each other to make sure they had a good view of the action. A shushing sound came from a woman behind them, who was clearly much older than the rest and held herself with the bearing of a woman not to be trifled with. The resuming silence was immediate. Their focus returned to the cocoon.

A small fracture had appeared in one side. The Young Feathers were riveted on this, but the older girls stood surprised. Usually after the initial crack a cocoon would begin to leek a watery fluid. None was coming out. Rakka and Kuu stepped forward curiously and inspected the crack.

Haibane Ranma

His head swam as he tried to regain his bearings. _'Ow. What the hell hit me this time?'_ He lay there while the world finished spinning then slowly rose to his feet. He looked around himself to find he was in a large field with softly rolling hills. Upon the top of one hill was a horse, prancing about gaily. From what Ranma could tell, it was a stallion and what he thought was called a 'paint horse' by it's coloring. It moved about with a mixture of grace and power that could not be tamed. It was it's own and had no one it was subservient to. A wild horse. It's movements became almost hypnotic, like a well practiced dance.

After watching for what seemed like hours, the scenery vanished suddenly and images began to flash before him. He was startled and confused by what he saw. It was all familiar, yet not. A large room where people fought each other, but only for the pure joy of the fight itself... The faces of people that flashed so quickly he could only make out key aspects of them. A light brown pony-tail hung over a shoulder... A girl with a bob haircut and a scowling mouth... A pair of deep chocolate brown eyes that perfectly matched her hair... An older man with a white bandanna on his head. More images of places and people flashed before his eyes, faster and faster until his vision faded to white and he saw no more of them. He closed his eyes and shook his head to banish the light and visions from his view. When he reopened them he could see a strange gray-green wall in front of his face.

_'What the...? Where am I now? What is this place?' _The boy thought to himself as he took stock of his new place. He was curled up and floating in an odorless clear liquid. Everywhere he looked he say the same gray-green wall. He was surrounded in all directions by it. '_I'm inside something.'_ The fact he was able to breathe the fluid hadn't crossed his mind. It instead became focused on what his ears were bringing him. On the other side of that strange wall he could hear voices. They were too muffled to make out. Seeing no reason to remain inside he placed his hand upon an edge and pressed lightly against it.

_'It's hard, but brittle. Oh I think I cracked it a little. A good hard push should get me out of here.' _He didn't notice that the talking on the other side had stopped. He wasn't able to get the leverage he was hoping for because his little prison was so small, but it was enough to make a decent attempt to punch the crack that had formed. With as much force as he could muster he thrust his arm and fist forward and into the crack, the fluid slowing his speed considerably. He was rewarded with a satisfying crunch as a chunk of the wall flew out. The fact that this would cause a massive burst of fluid to pour out only brought meaning to him as it occurred. A sudden bright light from the new hole and the rushing fluid caused him to lose balance and he crumpled out, unable to regain his balance. His head struck something hard he thought was stone and one thought managed to form before sweet unconsciousness took him. _'Why me?'_

**Crack. Crack! Fwoom!**

Fracturing further, Kuu and Rakka stepped back just in time for a chunk of the cocoon wall to suddenly fly outward, nearly hitting them as the whole upper half of that side of the cocoon shattered. The lower half crumbled away under the weight of the person who spilled out of it with all the grace of a landing albatross. Their head hit the edge of the fountain then the cobblestones below and Reki, worried the blows might have caused serious injury, stepped through the warm fluid to the mess of person and robe that had fallen out to be sure she was okay.

There were several things that she noticed while trying to turn over the unconscious form that had fallen out. First and most surprising was that it was a boy, and not young enough to be a Young Feather at all. From his appearance, he could be as old as Reki herself, and she was nearly an adult by all standards. He had hair as black as her own and was a bit passed his shoulders. Although his hair was still wet from the cocoon fluid, it started to wave slightly, giving the impression that when dry it could be naturally unruly. He wore the typical robe that all wore when they arrived this way.

"Hikari, Nemu and Rakka, give me a hand will you? He's heavy and we need to get him inside." A few questioning mutters of 'he' were heard as they approached to help Reki pick him up. They did so with little trouble and had only taken a few steps when a Young Feather boy rushed up to Reki. He had a bowl haircut and an excitable look on his face.

"There's another one! On the other side of the building over there!" He pointed to the northern end of the courtyard. Reki brushed this to the side. She had one New Feather already to take care of and even with four of them it was an awkward carry to get him inside.

"We'll take a look at the other cocoon later, Shorta. Right now we need to get the one that hatched inside and into a bed."

"This one already hatched too! She's lying on the ground!" Reki's cigarette fell from her mouth to the ground. "What should we do, Reki?

Reki thought quickly. "Kuu and Hana, take mine and Rakka's place and get him inside. Rakka and I will see to the girl. Kana, go ahead and prepare the guest room for two."

Barely hearing the positive responses from the others, Reki and Rakka followed Shorta to find the girl from the other cocoon.

Haibane Ranma

"Ooookay... How am I supposed to prepare a room with _one_ bed for both a _boy and a girl_ to sleep in?" Kana stood looking frustrated at the single bed as if it were the one at fault for her dilemma. Kana wore a dark green shirt. It was old and fraying at the edges and the colors were faded. It buttoned all the way up to a short but close collar. She also wore a pair of dark casual slacks. Both articles of clothing showed a lot of wear.

"Seriously though, why the hell did a boy hatch here in the first place?" Kana sighed. "I guess I could get the cot from the next room over. No one is using that room right now. With that, Kana left to obtain something for one of the two to lay on.

Not long after Kana left, the door opened again. A sleepy-eyed Nemu entered first, carrying the boy with her hands gripping him under his arms. Hikari entered at his other end, struggling with the weight of his legs. Once through the door Hikari hissed for help and received it from the other two. Kuu hefted him up from the left side, and Hana, a Young Feather that was always willing to help others, took the right side. Due to her stature, she was helping from underneath him with a cheerful smile on her face. The group saw only the one bed prepared, and so laid him on it.

"Thanks for the help, Hana! You did great!" Hikari smiled at the younger girl and she beamed back at her. Hikari wore a nice white blouse and knee length skirt that wouldn't look out of place in an office. She sported a pony-tail high on her head. Nemu conversely wore a light sweater and a dark ankle-length skirt. Hana looked at her own dress and her grin grew wider. It was a pale red but not quite pink and simple in design with a white collar. The fact that it was a bit dirty increased her grin. She looked up to the older girls and while she enjoyed being clean, Hana also believed that having a little dirt on you meant you were a hard worker and she loved being appreciated.

Through the open doorway entered Reki and Rakka, carrying a girl of similar age to the boy. Reki looked around as they came closer to the middle, looking for a place to set her. Not finding one she also discovered a distinct lack of Kana in the room.

"I thought I asked Kana to prepare the room for two. Where is she?" Reki asked irritably.

With a nervous smile, Rakka replied, "well, it's more like you told her." Reki rolled her eyes. Nemu looked up from tucking the boy into the bed.

"I think I saw her just turning a corner down the hall when we got here. She probably went..." She trailed off as Kana entered the room, a bundle of wood and canvas in her hands. With the help of the unoccupied girls in the room a cot was quickly set up and the new girl was settled on it, relieving Rakka and Reki of their charge.

"Sorry about that, Reki," Kana said, trying to placate her. "It took a little bit to get the cot loose from the clutter." Kana sat into a chair and sighed. "Do we have a plan? I mean, have we ever had two newbies at once? It is going to be hectic if their wings both come in about the same time you know."

"And does the Haibane Renmei have two halo molds? I can't imagine giving them only one at a time," Hikari added.

"Settle down, ladies," Reki called calmly to the group. "One thing at a time. We need to be sure everything is ready for them in the order we need it. This is a new thing for us, so let's work together and divide our tasks." The girls nodded in agreement. "Kuu, I want you and Rakka to watch over these two. Nemu, please prepare some snacks for them in case they wake up and are hungry and stock the first-aid kit. We need to be ready for their wings when they break through. Hikari and Kana can go to the temple for the Halo molds. Try to get two if you can."

"What are _we _going to do, Reki?" Hana looked up at her excitedly.

"I am going to town to see if we can get a proper bed for the girl. We only planned on one and didn't have a spare." Reki noted the hopeful look in Hana's eyes. "You can come if you want, but don't tell the others or they'll want to make a field trip out of it, and we don't have the time."

Hana squealed in delight for a moment then forced herself to appear dignified. "Thank you very much, big sister Reki," she said almost formally.

_'Little brat trying to stay on my good side so I don't change my mind... Well, she's a helpful brat though, so I'll let it slide,'_ Reki thought to herself. "Okay, let's get moving then. Time flies, we don't."

Rakka and Kuu waved them off, telling them not to worry and that they had everything in hand. With the others gone on their tasks, the two each picked chairs to sit in and a New Feather to watch over, Rakka sitting next to the cot nervously. She looked the girl over.

The girl was pretty, with chocolate brown hair that clung to her face from the dampness of the cocoon fluid that still covered much of her. Rakka picked up a towel and started drying it carefully. Her hair looked like it may have been long once, but was cut to not quite reach her shoulders. She looked to be about the same age as the boy, maybe a little older. Possibly as old as Reki, but probably not. _'Wow,' _she thought, _'She's very pretty like this. Is this how I looked to Reki when she was watching over me after I hatched? She said it 'takes time' to clean newborn's wings. I really like this feeling. Maybe it's how mothers feel?'_

After more than an hour of reminiscing and a little fantasizing about what motherhood was like, the girl on the cot began to stir. As the other girls had not yet returned Rakka began to panic internally with thoughts of what to do or say. In the end she pulled on memories of how she was treated when she first woke up.

"How are you feeling?" Rakka asked quietly. Kuu looked over at the sudden question, but Rakka didn't see. The girl groaned softly.

"Ugh... Like my head will explode if I think too much." She winced. "Or talk too loud," she said more quietly.

Rakka was torn between feeling humor and sympathy. The latter won out before she spoke. "I see. You probably hit your head on the stones when you hatched from the cocoon. Reki and I found you on the ground just outside the northern rooms of Old Home."

"Old Home? Cocoon? What are you talking about?" the girl asked drowsily. She looked up at Rakka with bleary eyes. "Who are you, and who is Reki?" The girl's eyes suddenly widened as she got a good look at Rakka. "WHAT are you?!" she asked, her voice rising in pitch.

_'Oh I hope the others get back soon!' _Rakka thought, beginning to internally panic again. Kuu's voice brought a welcome distraction until she registered what she said.

"I think the new girl woke up the new boy, Rakka!" Rakka tried her best to look composed like Reki had with her. She barely managed it and stood to retrieve a cup of water sitting with the snacks Nemu had left on the table earlier. After asking Kuu to see if he could talk she sat back down with the girl and offered the glass.

"So I'm not the only new kid on the block, so to speak?"

"No, actually," Rakka replied. "There are two of you. We found the new boy's cocoon a week ago, but we didn't find you until after you had hatched from yours."

"Hatched? What do you mean 'hatched'? People don't 'hatch' like some bird!" The girl looked a mix of confused, angry and flustered. Rakka wasn't sure she could deal with this but she kept trying to act calm.

"Is the new girl going to be okay over there?" Kuu asked with a small grin on her face.

"No," the girl said with a snap. "I'm not okay. And don't call me 'new girl', I have a name." Kuu and Rakka raised their eyebrows at this in surprise. "Oh don't look at me like that, my name is..." She trailed off uncertainly. "My name... oh Kami, I don't remember my name!"

Rakka looked at her sadly, remembering her first day here with clarity, only having happened a few weeks ago. "No one does. No one here remembers you or your name, and you wouldn't remember any of us. That is how it works when you are reborn as a Haibane. As for hatching, that's how the Haibane come to this world." Rakka kept her voice as calm as she could and watched for the girl's reaction. It wasn't long in coming, but it looked like it came after a mask was put in place.

"So," the girl started, "what am I going to be called then? I can't very well be called 'the new girl' all the time."

"Well, it is a tradition among the Haibane to be named after the dreams we had while we were in the cocoon. My name is Rakka, which is another word for 'falling' because in my dream I was falling through the sky. The girl over there is Kuu. Her dream was flying in the air so she was named Kuu, meaning 'air'.

"Ah, they're awake," came a voice from the doorway. Reki had returned with Hana. There was no bed in sight with them. "How are they doing?"

"Reki! I'm glad you're back," Kuu exclaimed excitedly. "The new girl has a lot of questions, and the boy is getting very hot and sweating."

"Oh no, has Nemu returned with the first-aid kit yet?"

"Not yet, Reki," Rakka answered. "She should be back any-" The door Reki closed behind her burst back open, a slightly winded Nemu holding a two large metal basins filled with towels, brushes and a tin box walking quickly in. She deposited her load onto the table, barely missing the snacks as little Hana snatched them to safety. Nemu then tossed the tin box to Reki.

She'd have caught it if not for a sudden yelp of pain from the boy in the bed near her. Instead of her fingers grasping the handle they caught the latch, causing the kit to open in mid-air and spill it's contents everywhere. Reki cursed quietly and bent low to pick up a roll of medical tape.

"Reki!" Rakka called out in a panic. She ignored her for a moment and checked the boy's back. Between and slightly below his shoulders were two very large lumps that looked as though they may burst at any moment. She glanced then over to Rakka, who was looking over a hunched over new girl. Nemu was there also and looked up to Reki.

"This one is about to break too," Nemu said, sounding to anyone who didn't know her well as though she were unconcerned about it. "I think we'll need to split this up." Nemu held out a hand expectantly.

While Reki wrapped her own thumb with a several layers of medical tape Hana stood rooted to the floor, eyes wide at the events happening before her. Reki noticed this as she tossed the tape to Nemu's waiting hands. "This is not the place for you right now, Hana. Go outside!" Hana came out of her stupor and then looked at Reki defiantly.

"I want to help! Some day I might have to do this too!"

"Fine, I don't have time to argue," Reki said irritated. "Sit there and don't get in the way." Reki pointed in the general direction of the door to the balcony. Hana walked quietly to a chair which she placed against the balcony door frame and stood on it to get a good view.

"Bite on this so you don't bite your tongue," Reki ordered the new boy as she settled next to his bed and offered her bandaged thumb. A similarly worded order came from Nemu next to the girl. When the boy's teeth clamped onto her thickly wrapped thumb Reki was suddenly glad she had wrapped it thicker than she usually would. She worried greatly that his bite might win the battle and break her thumb.

Across the room, Nemu was on the verge of tears. She'd never had anyone bite her before, and although she wrapped thickly just in case, the pain was not something she was accustomed to. Through watering eyes she looked at the girl's back and saw the lumps expand slightly before they began to crack and bleed. Nemu tried with difficulty to watch the wings as they were about to sprout, but the pain finally won over and she clenched her eyes shut in an attempt to block it out.

Hana had turned white as a sheet. From her perch she could see blood coming from the backs of both New Feathers, and a more clear liquid as well. When she was newly hatched she had been told that a Haibane's wings first sprouting was a beautiful moment to be cherished. She had never been allowed to watch it actually happen before, and it was as terrifying as it was beautiful. She was frightened, but at the same time she couldn't tear her gaze away from one without immediately watching the other. Unlike Reki and Nemu, Hana was able to see the sprouting as it happened.

From the boy she saw wet and soggy wings slowly emerging into the room's light, covered in blood and grease. His back looked as though it might be torn apart if this went badly. Their exodus was so slow that Hana felt her own wings twitch slightly as she imagined the pain he must be feeling. He didn't scream. His mouth was biting hard on Reki's wrapped thumb and it looked like tears were forming in his eyes, but he didn't cry out.

From the girl came a similar yet different event. As her wings began their own exit from her back, Hana watched the girl whimper and sob quietly, her pitch rising with each inch that removed itself from the confines of her skin. Hana's eyes widened further when she noticed something unusual and she darted her gaze back to the boy. If anything, they widened as much as possible upon seeing his predicament.

From the boy's back his wings hadn't stopped coming out. They were still folded, but they had already surpassed the size of any Haibane's wings she'd ever seen when they were open. At most, she'd seen Haibane with open wings as long as her own arm, which admittedly were not as long as Reki's or the other older Feathers. The wings coming from the boy looked as long as HIS arms, and they still hadn't unfolded.

With a sudden snapping as if a signal had been given, the screams came. At nearly synchronized times, the wings of both the boy and girl snapped open. The boy's wings were massive, maybe as long as he was tall! The movement was quick enough that it caught Kuu, who was standing nearby with a comforting hand on Reki's shoulder, knocking her back a few feet and to the floor, crashing a small table down with her. Five more screams joined the late evening air as the Haibane present saw the New Feather's wings through the blood and grease; one pair gray and larger than should be possible, and one pair a glossy, raven black.

Haibbane Ranma

Dawn came at a crawling pace the next day. Surrounding the new boy were Hikari and Kana (whom had returned not long after the sprouting had finished), Rakka, Nemu and Kuu. All five of them diligently brushing and cleaning his wings. As they were so large, it became a group project instead of a solo job. While Reki would have liked help with cleaning the girl's wings, she understood why the others were hesitant. Hana might have been willing, but she was sleeping in a bundle of blankets in the corner, being too tired to remain awake and too terrified to sleep alone. As it was she woke twice sniffling during the night and was only calmed back to sleep by Nemu and Reki. _'Poor girl will have nightmares for a month after this,' _Reki thought to herself as she continued to work.

Reki looked at the wings she currently worked to free from the grease remaining. To her, it felt like Reki's past had returned to haunt her. The emotions she felt were a twisted mess of confusion, anger and a little happiness. No one, even herself had ever seen wings that were completely black before, so it was not a great surprise that the others were frightened of the girl. Regardless, wings needed to be cleaned, and there was no way of knowing what was going to happen with her. With a small smile to herself she continued her nearly finished work.

"Nemu, have you ever seen anything like this?" Nemu looked up at Rakka whom had asked.

"No. Aside from Reki, no one has been here longer than I have, but neither of us have seen wings this size before. The Haibane Renmei might know something about it, but as for me, I am clueless."

"They are amazing though, aren't they? And so pretty," Kuu said with a grin, pulling the brush through a pinion feather. "Think he could fly with wings this size?"

"I doubt it," Hikari said with her brows knit close together in concentration. "He felt way too heavy for that, even as big as these are." Hikari carefully shifted two feathers to find a patch of grease that had escaped notice before and set to clearing it up.

"That's true. He was really hard to get up the stairs. Must be a boy thing, he doesn't look like he'd weigh so much."

"Boys do usually weigh more than we do," Nemu said, calmly washing a greasy brush. "If you've ever tried to pick them up, you'll notice Shorta weighs more than Hana does, but they are roughly the same size."

"Aw," Kuu whined. "And I was hoping he could take me up into the air someday so I could relive my dream." The group of Haibane giggled lightly at the thought. It brought with it an ease in the room's tension that had been present every time they had looked at the girl Reki was working on.

A light stirring from the boy brought their attention.

"Reki, I think he's waking up."

Reki finished her final stroke and double checked that she had gotten the girl's wings fully cleaned. Satisfied with her work she stood and walked over to the boy.

"Thanks, Kuu," she said as they scooted an opening for her to set her stool down. She pulled a cigarette out, paused looking at Hana in the corner, and then put it back in the pack. The boy groaned aloud.

"Ugh. What's going on? Where am I? I feel like the ground exploded beneath me."

"You are in Old Home, a nest of the Haibane," Reki answered him. His eyes snapped open and he looked around.

"An old home? Who's home? What are Haibane?"

_'I guess he really wasn't awake earlier when we explained this to the girl,' _Reki thought. "No one really knows exactly where in the world we are, or what we Haibane are, but as you are here, you are one of us."

"Please don't move your wings too much," Rakka said as the boy tried to shift his position to get a better look at Reki. "We aren't done cleaning them yet."

"Wings?" Trying to shift his head further to see them caused a twinge in his back, leading to a violent twitch in his wings. This startled the girls around him eliciting a few surprised squeaks. "What's going on?"

"Let's start at the beginning. Do you mind if I smoke?" Before the boy could answer her she received a glare of disapproval from Nemu who pointedly tilted her head toward Hana, sleeping in her bundle of blankets. Reki sighed grumpily and made a non-committal noise, putting the pack away. "Okay, could you please tell us about the dream you had while you were in your cocoon?"

The boy looked thoughtful for a moment then gave a small shrug that caused a tiny twitch in his wings and began to speak. He told them all he could remember, including the flashing images. This made for more than a few raised eyebrows. The girls turned to look at Reki who was thinking.

_'Flashing images... Flashing... No, that probably won't go over well. The horse maybe? A horse prancing wild and free... A Wild Horse...'_

"Ranma," Reki said after a moment. The girls seemed satisfied with the statement, but the boy looked questioningly at her. "Ranma is another name for a wild horse, so you shall be called 'Ranma'."

Hikari smiled and reached to a small bedside table where rested a mitten and a small closed metal pan sitting on a hot plate. She opened it and intoned formally, "Feather Ranma." She paused then giggled. "That sounds very nice. Ahem. Feather Ranma, to help guide your future as a fellow Haibane, I give unto you this Halo." With a set of tongs Hikari pulled from the pan a glowing ring about the size of a thick necklace. It looked like a flat ring one might toss at festival. With a nod from the other girls showing their cleaning was finally finished, she asked him to sit up. After doing so, Hikari gently lowered the Halo to rest a few inches above his head and released it. Ranma half expected it to fall on him, but it stayed there, hovering above him.

"Be careful," Kuu said. "It's probably still hot." As the pan that it came from was still steaming and Hikari was holding it with a mitten, Ranma didn't doubt that it was hot and so had no desire to touch it. He did admire the soft glow it gave from above him and idly noted that it would probably mean he had a permanent night light above him. He could feel the heat coming from it as well, but it wasn't uncomfortable. On the contrary, it felt almost like having his head held in a soothing embrace. He tried to look up at it in wonder, having not felt anything quite like it before, but it moved with his head and the best he could see was the glow it put out over his head.

"Oh so he gets a halo and name while I don't, huh?" They all turned to look at the new girl, who had woken up while they were focused on Ranma. "Geez, what's a girl gotta do to get a name around here?"

There was a pause where they all looked at her, as though not sure they had the courage to answer the raven-winged girl. Kana was the first to speak up, though Reki had her mouth open to reply as well. "It's like we told you earlier, we Haibane are named after the dream we have in the cocoon. It's a tradition, even if some of the Young Feathers don't respect it. Ready to tell your dream to us?"

The girl's face immediately changed from indignant to apprehensive. She managed to school her features after a moment, and then folded her arms below her chest. "Going to name me after a dream I had then? I think I might agree with these 'Young Feathers' then."

"Someone have a nightmare instead of a good dream?" Kana asked in a semi-mocking tone.

"Kana," Nemu snapped disapprovingly, "There is no need to assume the worst of her. I'm sure she had a wonderful dream." Nemu turned to face the girl. "Would you please tell us what you remember of your dream in the cocoon? It wouldn't be polite to call you 'new girl' forever."

"No, I wouldn't like that," the girl said.

"Then please, tell us what you saw in your dream," Reki asked calmly. The girl sat quietly, looking into her lap. After several minutes, Ranma spoke up.

"Come on, don't be so stubborn and tell them. Geez, learn to bend a little." The silence having been broken led to voices of agreement and mutterings. It took only a moment of being bombarded like this before the girl finally exploded.

"I don't remember, okay?!" The silent moment after her declaration was only marred by the sound of Hana starting awake. "I can't remember anything from before waking up in here! I don't know if I had a family, or friends, or any of it! I don't know who I am at all, and I certainly don't remember dreaming anything!" Her eyes were watering, but she did her best to force the tears away. "I don't want to be called 'Rei' or 'Zero' or anything like that but I. Don't. Remember!"

The girls started talking to each other about how to handle this when Hana came up to Nemu and crawled into her lap. It was a measure of how distracted Nemu was that she allowed this, as she typically told the Young Feathers they had to ask permission first and would only be allowed during story time at the library. "Do you know how I can help calm the new girl down, Nemu? She looks sad to me."

_'She is still taking this better than I would. No matter what Ranma said, she is trying to accept it. She is like a willow, confused and sad, but bending to a force she can't fight. Bending...'_

"Nabiki," Nemu said simply. The new girl looked up from her lap at her. "I remember a story about willow tree that could not break because it would bend in the strongest storms. The story named the tree Nabiki because it meant 'bending'. I think we should call you Nabiki."

"But the tradition of the dream name..." Kana started. Nemu interrupted her.

"Can't apply if she remembers nothing. We'll just have to go with the option the Young Feathers have started taking and name her by a character trait. She did say she rather thought they had the right idea."

The group turned to look at Reki who, being the Senior Haibane due to the length of time she'd been in Old Home, was traditionally the final say in a New Feather's name. She thought for a moment then nodded her acceptance.

"It's settled then. You will be named Nabiki," Nemu said.

Kana sighed in defeat, grabbed a mitten from the table and a second pan they hadn't noticed from the hotplate. "Feather Nabiki," she intoned, opening the pan. Like before, steam came from this one too. "To help guide your future as a fellow Haibane, I give unto you this Halo." With tongs in hand Kana gripped the glowing ring and pulled it out to place over Nabiki's head. It shook slightly in the tongs and almost slipped out on the way, but did manage to arrive safely to perch overhead. It wavered there for a second or two before settling in it's position.

Five gasps sounded off in the room and Nabiki glared at them. Reki, Hana and Ranma had not been among the gasps, each for their own reason. For Reki the only reason it should not stick is for certain Young Feathers, which she clearly wasn't, or for Rakka, whose Halo Mold had been used for something other than it's intended purpose prior to making her Halo. To Hana there was no reason to think Nabiki's Halo should behave differently than any other would. In Ranma's case he'd never seen one other than his own be placed and was oblivious to the possible reasons the other girls might have.

"What, surprised that a black-winged Haibane can hold a ring over her head? Did you think I'd have to prop it up with horns?" Nabiki asked indignantly. Ranma stood from his bed and sat himself down next to her.

"Not at all, Nabiki," Reki began. "You both are a little unusual to us, true, but that doesn't make you any better or worse than anyone else here." The other girls nodded in agreement, not wanting to spark another argument. "And so, on behalf of everyone here, welcome to Old Home."

_**Author's Notes**_

Thank you all for reading! Life has been busy all this year, and I hate making promises and breaking them, so I'm sorry this wasn't out almost a year ago. The good news, is I have the next three chapters finished and will post them one at a time while I continue to work on the next ones. The bad news is I need a Beta now, as my editor is on permanent leave. For those who wish to compare the original chapters with these ones, please check out the original Haibane Ranma story I posted! Fun trivia fact: I came up with the original idea for this story and wrote the first chapter while in jail overnight because one of my friends did something stupid.


	2. Chapter 2

_"__What, surprised that a black-winged Haibane can hold a ring over her head? Did you think I'd have to prop it up with horns?" Nabiki asked indignantly. Ranma stood from his bed and sat himself down next to her._

_"__Not at all, Nabiki," Reki began. "You both are a little unusual to us, true, but that doesn't make you any better or worse than anyone else here." The other girls nodded in agreement, not wanting to spark another argument. "And so, on behalf of everyone here, welcome to Old Home."_

Haibane Ranma Redone: Chapter 2

Nabiki looked at the group of girls for a moment before noticing Ranma from the corner of her eye. He had bowed his head towards them and looked to be waiting for her to do the same. In all the excitement she had almost neglected a common courtesy. She bowed her head likewise and they both said a thank you to the group using different words. She felt like things were calming down enough that she might be able to get some answers and a handle on things. _'I really need to stop freaking out so much. I hate being caught so flat-footed and off-balance. Time to start finding my footing here.'_

"So," Nabiki began, "what do we do from here?"

"For you guys it's going to be getting settled in," Kana said matter-of-factly. "Things like picking a room, getting some clothes, meeting the old guys... Stuff like that."

Hikari chimed in. "We will need to get back to our jobs tomorrow though. Most of us got time off for this, but we can't stay away for long."

"Most of you?" Nabiki looked around. "Who didn't get time off?"

Reki made a grumpy noise. "I don't ever really get time off. Oh I am here, true, but since my job is taking care of the Young Feathers, you could say I work the most. Little brats don't even thank me for it." From the corner of her eye, Nabiki could see Hana lower her face a little at that. "Still, if it means they'll grow up to be good Haibane, then it's a job worth doing." Nabiki supposed that was fair. She wasn't sure she'd like spending all day with rowdy kids herself though.

"So you all have jobs then? What kind of jobs do Haibane have?"

"Oh all kinds," Kuu said excitedly. "The choices are endless as long as your boss will take you on!" Nabiki might have face-faulted at this, but her composure held easier by the moment. "For example," Kuu continued, "Hikari works at the bakery!" Said girl smiled brightly, a faint dusting of pink in her cheeks.

"The Golden Crust is the oldest bakery in town," Hikari told them. "It's also the only bakery that will employ the Haibane. I asked to work there because they make some of the most delicious bread and I wanted to be remembered someday as a Haibane who brought something to the town for everyone to enjoy." Hikari finished with what Nabiki could see as the tiniest bit of pride.

"Yeah, Hikari is very good at coming up with new pancake ideas too, aren't you Hikari," Kuu teased. Hikari's blush deepened in embarassment and for some reason Rakka ran her hands through her hair as though trying to tame it.

Hikari laughed nervously and changed the subject. "Nemu works for the library in town. Sleepy-eyed as she is, I'm told she does a good job."

"Hey now," Nemu said disgruntled. Rakka's face lit up.

"Oh yes! I was there with her a few days ago. The library has a lot of books, some even talk about the origins of the world! No one knows if they are true or not, but it seems really nice anyway." Rakka sighed wistfully and stared up at the ceiling as if watching an invisible bug. Seeing that she had gone off into her own little world, Nemu picked up the conversation.

"I help out mostly with stocking and reorganizing shelves, but I also have a little time with the head librarian to do some research on my own and once a week I have story time with the Young Feathers there. Sometimes mothers will bring their children to that as well."

Nabiki thought about this. A library for research could be useful. It would do her some good to learn as much as she could about this new environment she was in. She missed what Nemu said next, but Kana's reply was impossible to shut out.

"I'm not late everyday, Nemu! And besides, Master knows I work hard when I'm there so He wouldn't just kick me out. Who else is going to clean up after their all-nighters?" Nabiki searched quickly through her mind to latch on to what she was talking about. Something about clocks.

"Don't you have a watch," Nabiki asked her. Kana pulled out an old but well cared for pocket watch and clicked it open.

"Yep! Working for a clock maker has it's perks! Master has taught me a lot about them. I hope to one day repair the big one in the tower over there," Kana said pointing to a spot out the window that Nabiki couldn't see.

"Her watch doesn't seem to help much," Hikari said with a smirk. "She still rushes out the door everyday and is either late or barely makes it on time. Rakka said you even seemed proud of it that time when she was with you."

"Rakka!" Kana growled at the younger Haibane, who was still observing the ceiling. "Besides, I was proud that my watch was telling the correct time."

"So Kuu," Ranma intervened. "What do you do?" Ranma looked nervously around. Nabiki looked at him thoughtfully. _'Doesn't like confrontation, or is it just arguing girls that gets him bothered?' _It worked however and the potential argument was snuffed out before it had time to pick up steam.

"Oh I do a little of everything!" Kuu was practically bouncing in her seat. "Mostly I help out at the cafe cleaning tables, but sometimes I help with deliveries and other little tasks. I get a nice amount of free time in the afternoon." As Kuu continued her smile grew until it almost split her face. Nabiki could tell that this was a girl with infectious optimism, if Ranma's growing smile was any indication. She turned toward Rakka who had returned to the conversation listening to Kuu ramble on.

"What about you, um... Rakka?" At her nod, Nabiki continued. "What kind of job do you have?"

"Oh... well, I'm not working yet. I've only been here for a few weeks so I don't have a job yet. I've been watching the others at their jobs while I try to figure out what I'm going to do." Rakka gave a weak grin and turned back to the rest of the conversing Haibane.

"What's the pay like," Nabiki asked aloud to the chatting group. It got silent for a moment before Nabiki continued. "Is it all about the same or do the rates differ? I could certainly use some money to improve my new room once I'm in it and some nicer clothes than this thing." Nabiki plucked at the rough cotton gown thing she was wearing. Still not hearing a reply she looked up. "What?"

"The Haibane are forbidden to earn money for their work," Reki answered her after a moment's pause. "Instead our work is recorded in these." She pulled out a small notebook with a strange symbol on the cover. The notebook looked very old, and many of it's pages were torn out. The name "Reki" was engraved on a small oval plate near the bottom, just below a silver inscription that declared the notebook as the 'Haibane Notebook of the Haibane Renmei'. With that in mind Nabiki supposed the symbol could look like a person with long arms partially outstretched and a halo on their head, if a very thin and tall person. "When we need something, we take a leaf with a day's work recorded on it out of these and give it in place of money the townspeople use.

"So what stops you from putting in your own amounts beyond what you actually do?" There were a few gasps in the room at the question.

"Integrity, mostly," Reki said calmly. "No one has ever tried that I know of but, knowing the old guys in the temple, you would be severely punished if you did. Those guys know everything even if they rarely explain any of what they know."

_'So best not try it. Out of fear or respect, if the 'old guys' actually DO know everything, then this is a system that works. I'd like to see how this works in practice though.'_

"Speaking of spending," Kuu said excitedly, "Why don't we go into town to get some clothes for you both? It's been a while, but I don't remember those robes being very comfy, and I could use a new hat."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Nemu said. "They are still healing from having their wings come in. They may be tired and certainly need more rest before that." Kuu looked up at Nemu disappointed but conceded the suggestion; until Ranma agreed with her.

"I'm all for it! I feel fine and could really use a good stretch. A walk around town sounds like just the thing to keep me from feeling cooped up inside too. How about it?" After some discussion from the group, Kuu and Ranma won and plans began to be made.

"Oh WOW! Look at this!" A voice from the doorway grabbed the attention of everyone in the room. Standing in the doorway were two Young Feather boys. They were both close to Hana's age, Nabiki surmised. One of them was pointing at Ranma. Or more likely at Ranma's wings, since the positioning of the room's occupants likely obscured view of Ranma himself from the kids in the doorway. Ranma's wings twitched violently at the sudden outburst, which further excited comment from the boy.

"Whoa! They are huge! How did they get so big," asked the other boy.

Reki slapped a hand to her forehead and muttered under her breath a moment before raising her voice.

"Daiku and Shorta, you two were told you couldn't come in here! Do you just like making me mad?!"

The boys looked wide-eyed but didn't run like Nabiki thought they might. Instead with a slightly shaky voice the one named Daiku spoke.

"Hana is in here, it's not fair if we can't come too!"

"Hana was here helping when this all started, and she stayed out of the way. You two would have been in the way and made the whole thing harder on them and us."

"You don't know that! We could have done the same. It's not fair that she got to see a sprouting and we won't!"

Reki growled in frustration then beckoned them inside. Nabiki privately thought that had she not relented to the two boys Reki might have started pulling her own hair out. The boys rushed excitedly to Ranma and began to man-handle his wings, much to his discomfort. The one Nabiki believed to be Daiku grinning smugly and exclaiming how he'd known the big wings belonged to 'the boy' while the other boy expressed how certain he had been that 'the girl' would have been the one with them. Ranma looked at her in a panic with barely held concentration mixing in his expression. He was clearly not used to so much physical contact as these kids were displaying and at the same time trying to stop his wings from jerking again. Sure enough, after seconds more, his wings snapped open to their full and impressive span. This sudden movement knocked both of the boys away from the group and onto the ground.

With a sigh, Nabiki stood from where she sat next to Ranma and crouched between the two fallen boys. She held out a hand to one of them and calmly asked, "need some help up?"

Daiku reached his hand out blindly toward the voice, still wincing from the shock of being unceremoniously dropped on his behind. "Thank y-" he stopped dead upon opening his eyes. Nabiki could see his eyes widening as he looked her over, particularly while he looked past her shoulder. She also felt as though she was being stared at from behind. He suspicions were confirmed when a high-pitched squeal of terror came from the other boy behind her.

"M-m-m-monster!" Shorta bolted out of the room screaming in that way only little boys can, followed close behind by a scrambling Daiku. Nabiki turned to look at Hana who was still in her corner watching the whole thing. The little girl flinched and pulled the blankets closer to herself, but did not make a sound otherwise.

"Oh yeah, I can see going into town is going to be loads of fun for me." Not even Ranma missed the sarcasm in her voice.

"It's not as bad as you might think," Reki said with a sigh. "The brats are easily excited. They're just kids after-all. The adults should be much better." Nabiki gave her a look of skeptical disbelief before feeling a light tug on the sleeve of her robe. She looked down to see Hana, still bundled in a blanket, standing next to her and looking like she was doing her very best to be brave.

"You... _aren't_ a monster, are you?" Nabiki just stared. She was tempted to growl but at the same time curious where this would go if she didn't purposely try to demonize herself to the Young Feather. "I think... your wings are pretty. Scary, but still pretty."

Nabiki wasn't sure how to react to this but before she could do anything about it Ranma placed a hand on Hana's head. "She is. I wouldn't worry about it though, if she tries to do anything to you then just come to big brother Ranma. He'll protect you from her." Nabiki wanted to wipe the grin off his face but a tiny part of her was trying to figure out if he meant she was scary or pretty. She settled on the former and scowled at him. Hana giggled.

"Thanks big brother." Ranma beamed at the title.

"Well," Nabiki said, "monster or no, I don't think going to town is on my priority list right now. I would rather work on getting settled here first."

"Suit yourself," Kuu said from behind her, having moved around the time the two boys had left. She plucked a small feather from Nabiki's wings, eliciting a small yelp from her. Nabiki glared at Kuu. "I'm going to need one to pay for some clothes for you until you get your notebook and some work. Don't worry, it grows back!" Kuu stepped back and leaned forward, smiling. "Any style you want?"

"No, as long as it gets me out of these rags, it's fine," Nabiki replied bitterly. Reki also opted out of going to town, expressing a desire to help Nabiki get settled in.

"I'll help too," Hana said excitedly. "Lots of rooms are not being used, so you can pick any of them! Most are a bit dirty though, so I'll get a broom and mop and rags and all that. Have fun in town, big brother!" And with that, Hana left the room as quickly as her legs could carry her out.

"Alright! Guess we've got a battle plan," Ranma said as he stood up to stretch his arms above his head. This proved to be a bad idea. The size of his wings and their light spasms as he stretched, combined with the amount of strain it placed on the ties in the back of his robe, finally proved too much for the garment to handle. With a popping sound, two of the highest ties snapped off and a third unraveled. When Ranma dropped his arms the robe on longer had anything to keep it up, so gravity claimed it to the floor.

All across the room the faces of the girls turned bright red. Ranma looked down and seeing the display being given to the rest of the room he paled. Nabiki, with only the faintest hint of a blush, looked at him barely containing her mirth behind a mask of indifference.

"You dropped something, Ranma."

From the courtyard outside, Daiku, Shorta and two other Young Feathers started in a panic as the shrieks of six girls came from the guest room. "The monster is attacking! Run!" Daiku called out and the four Young Feathers scattered.

With a wince, Ranma felt his face gingerly. Bold as day on his left cheek was a bright red hand, looking like it was clumsily drawn on by one of the Young Feathers. He was walking with Kana, Hikari, Kuu, Rakka and Nemu toward town, which he had been told was called Glie. After the incident, Ranma had been given a more durable robe to wear for the trip. It was brown and dingy; made of a rougher material that itched occasionally as he walked. The wing-slits in the back had been cut open completely at the top in order to accommodate his much larger wingspan. With a bit of added work from Nemu the shoulders included a cross strap around the neck that, although looking decidedly odd, ensured the robe wouldn't suddenly depart it's wearer. Ranma thought back to earlier.

_..._

_Ranma dressed in a small closet that was attached to the room he had just vacated. He had been given what the girls said was a travel robe used by the Haibane when they made their first town visit to get some clothes. Nemu, first to fight down her blush, had offered to make some adjustments to it when he came out to make sure a repeated offense wouldn't happen later. As he struggled with the shoulders he could hear the girls talking about him. That he was the topic wasn't too surprising to him seeing as he'd just shown them more than he wanted to show anyone. The specifics did surprise him though._

_The discussion they had revolved around the fact that he in fact _was _a boy. Until now the girls hadn't really discussed the fact that a boy who was not a Young Feather was in Old Home, let alone that he had hatched here. The male Haibane from Abandoned Factory it seemed were not generally allowed to visit Old Home, or at least not permitted on the grounds once they were no longer considered Young Feathers._

_Hikari had supposed out loud that it was due to events being so out of the ordinary, such as the unique wings of both the Newborns, that the hitherto unheard of male New Feather being hatched here hadn't really clicked until-_

_Ranma felt his face heat again as Hikari finished that line of thought. He continued fussing with the shoulders of the robe. It couldn't accommodate his wings properly but he wasn't about to give up. After a few more minutes struggle he finally caved and stepped out of the closet to see how Nemu could fix it._

_..._

"Does it still sting, Ranma?" Rakka looked down at her feet after he turned to look at her. He gave a little shrug as if to say yes, but not a big deal. "I'm sorry. I had my eyes closed, so I don't know who slapped you." Her face reddened a little, knowing that at the very least she literally had a hand in it.

Ranma stared for a moment, then replied with a deadpan expression. "Judging by the number of strikes, I would say everyone had a shot at it. One of you twice." Kana's wince went unnoticed. "It's funny though. For some reason I thought I was going to get hit by something a lot harder, like a table or something."

"Who would do something so violent as hit you with a table?"

"I dunno. Probably a macho chick."

"See many of those here," Kana asked flatly. Ranma shook his head.

A light-hearted laugh brought the girl's attention to Kuu, who was happily running in a circle ahead of the group with her arms outstretched. Ranma smiled at this. Kuu was the first of the girls to recover completely from the impromptu show and had either forgotten it or was well over the embarrassment as she turned and called out to him.

"Doesn't this breeze feel great, big brother?!" Ranma opened his mouth to reply, but a loud growl from his stomach spoke before he could. Kuu giggled. "I think big brother Ranma is hungry! We should get something to eat while we are there."

The mood shifted as though the embarrassment of before had never been. Several of the girls began to laugh and talk about where they might try to get some food. Kuu ran toward them and placed herself to walk between Ranma and Nemu.

"'Big brother'?" Nemu asked Kuu.

"Well, yeah! I mean he's with us in Old Home, and he is definitely older than I am, so it's like I have a big brother for the first time ever! How could any of us not be a little excited over that?"

Ranma, who had been turning his head to follow Kuu, noticed a smile grow on Hikari's face from behind them. He had never been anyone's big brother as far as he knew, but he was already starting to think of Kuu as the spunky little sister he never had. Or had forgotten, he wasn't sure. Nemu wasn't long in replying to Kuu.

"That makes sense. Though he might be younger than I am, so I'll just call him Ranma myself."

"More big brotherness for me," Kuu cheered happily, then grabbed onto his arm.

The group continued walking toward town, chatting amicably about little things. Topics ranged from the town itself, what things the did at their jobs and answering a few questions Ranma had about what to expect. It wasn't long before Glie could be seen as they topped a small hill and Ranma began to feel a little apprehension growing in the pit of his stomach. He wasn't worried about how the people would react to him and his wings, especially after what Nabiki had said. Nope, not at all.

A group of Haibane entering town made it's own subtle impression. As Glie was the only town within the walls and the distance to the outlying farms, the forest and the Haibane Nests were not short, most of travel into and out of the town was done by horse and cart, or on occasion, by scooter, though very few of those existed in town. The fuel used for them was expensive and like the scooters themselves came from beyond the walls. When asked about this, Hikari had told Ranma that the Haibane of Old Home were given one by the Haibane Renmei for emergency use and took the responsibility of fueling it in order to 'enforce proper use'. Kana said it meant they were being stingy about giving them fuel for Reki's scooter. With these things in mind, seeing a group walk into town typically caused a few glances to come their way.

In addition to a few glances and the occasional wave the girls were used to getting, a few of the townspeople, upon seeing Ranma's impressive wingspan, stood up and approached them. Like the other Haibane themselves, the people who approached them had questions about Ranma's wings. The girls answered what they could and for the questions they had no answer to they honestly replied that they weren't sure yet, but hoped to find out someday soon. They'd only been walking a few minutes when most of the townspeople went back to what they were doing, though admittedly there were less that approached them than there were those that figured they'd hear about it later. Gossip would ensure that.

As if to remind them of their initial plans, Ranma's stomach growled again. The girls laughed again and led him toward a small cafe to satisfy all of their needs for something to eat.

"You must be really hungry, big brother Ranma. You haven't eaten anything since you hatched, and that was yesterday afternoon!" Ranma's stomach confirmed Kuu's words, and he facepalmed. Kuu laughed and bounced toward the counter to order, pulling out her notebook.

Hikari leaned over to Ranma as he groaned.

"Oh don't be like that. Kuu is really sweet. You'll love having her as a little sister, 'big brother' Ranma."

Ranma looked up at her from his seat. "It's not that. Well, not really. I like the idea, but how do I act as a big brother? As far as I know I've never been one before."

"I wouldn't know," Hikari said with a little smirk. "I'm not likely to ever be one, so I can't help you there. Just be yourself, and I'm sure it will come to you naturally."

"I ordered us some sandwiches, everybody!" Kuu was back and bounced happily into an empty chair. The other girls took their seats around the small table on the patio as well. "Oh and the owner said since you are new you could have as much as you want, big brother Ranma. Just pay him with a feather and try to not knock anything over." Kuu smiled teasingly. Memories of a vase of flowers breaking on the floor while Nemu made adjustments to his robe flitted across his mind.

"I'm not _that_ accident prone, I swear." As if to counter his claim, a waiter approaching between them with a tray of water cups lost balance of the tray when Ranma's wings jerked slightly. The minor acrobatics on the part of the waiter as he tried to save himself failed, and a dripping wet Kuu looked at him with mock betrayal on her face. "Sorry," Ranma muttered.

Kuu laughed and accepted a towel from an apologetic waiter to dry herself off. This was a signal for the rest of the girls to laugh at the spectacle as well, and followed with some good natured bantering. The sandwiches arrived not long after.

Three full trays of sandwiches later Ranma was apologizing to the owner for having eaten so much. It was all so delicious and Ranma had been so hungry he could hardly help himself. One of the people working there had been sent to the baker and butcher for more supplies, the owner not sure where it was going to stop, but being a man of his word allowed Ranma to eat his fill.

"I know it isn't much, but take this until I get a notebook," Ranma bowed to the owner then reached behind him and grabbed a feather. Before he could pull he felt a hand grab his wrist. It was Nemu.

"Not that one. Your pinion feathers don't grow back." Nemu guided his hand to a different feather. With a sharp tug and a little internal hiss at the bit of pain, Ranma took the feather almost reverently in both hands and held it out to the shopkeeper, bowing respectfully as he did so. It wasn't a pinion, but it was still a very large feather. The man smiled at him like one would to a child who misbehaved but was genuinely repentant.

Ranma signed his name on a slip of paper the man provided him and then the group went on their way. They weren't more than a single shop away, a nice looking building with a needle and thread on it's signpost, when Kuu turned to walk backwards while she spoke. Much like everything she had been doing all day, Kuu was lively and spoke with the voice of someone without many worries.

"Wow, big brother Ranma, you sure eat a lot! You'll need to work hard if you are going to eat that much every day. Maybe you'll get a job that will work up a sweat for you." The other girls nodded in agreement.

"I just hope the Renmei will cover the cost with that feather of yours. They generally do on the first day or two, but I've never seen anyone eat so much in one sitting. Once you get your notebook they won't cover for you though, so don't take too long finding work." Nemu finished with a finger in the air as if giving a little lecture. Kana chose this moment to chime in.

"It's no surprise you've never seen anyone eat so much, Nemu. I'm not sure how often I've seen your eyes open more than just a tiny slit."

"Do you want a face to match Ranma's?" The threat was playful in nature. Ranma didn't know the girls well yet, and although he was sure she had already slapped him once, he was equally sure that Nemu was not likely to strike anyone without a stronger reason than playful teasing. Inwardly he thought to himself, _I _hope _I'm not this hungry all the time. I'll probably owe my soul to those guys before I get my notebook._

Several minutes later Kuu led the group into an out of the way shop advertised by a sign bearing a pair of scissors. The shop itself looked to be very old. The paint on the inside was cracked in a few places, and the displays had seen better days. In spite of this, Ranma noted that it was clean, and well cared for otherwise. A bell over the door had announced their arrival, and from behind a shelf that held carefully folded clothes came a man Ranma could only guess was the shopkeeper.

The man was older, but not so much that he had signs of aging settling into him. With a scruffy goatee on his face and a pair of eyes that shined like a man awake, alert and ready to go he greeted the group nonchalantly, but with an air of gratitude for custom.

"Hello, and welcome to-" the man began then stopped. He was looking at Ranma, he knew. It was likely due to the fact that with Ranma coming into the shop last and his wings being what they were, he was struggling with getting through the door. Ranma mentally cursed his lack of control with the offending appendages. With an extra push with his hands on the door frame he managed to finish his entry into the shop, but not without consequence. The sudden spike of sensations against his wings caused them to snap open to their full glory, the right wing crashing into a rack of assorted shirts and coats and his left knocking a stack of folded pants from their table to the floor.

"Sorry about this. I'll get them." And Ranma bent low to gather up the fallen garments.

"Ah..." said the shopkeeper, having come out of his brief stupor. "You must be new. I know I've never seen one like you in my store.

"We've never seen you looking to bright-eyed and awake before," Kana said with a smirk.

"You've never come in my store so late in the day, either. You Haibane seem to have a habit of arriving much earlier than this when I haven't yet had my coffee or much time to really wake up."

Ranma smiled inwardly. _Yeah, Nabiki was never good in the mornings before coffee either... Wait, how do I know that?_ Ranma paused a moment then shrugged and stood up to place the pile of clothing on the cleared spot on the table. His wings were now folded neatly against his back.

The shopkeeper was placing a box on the counter next to a register. "Here you go, the newest donations are here." Kana looked apprehensive, like she would dry heave any moment. When she looked into the box however, her expression changed.

"What gives? Last time it was a horrible mess and still dirty. This looks nothing like last time."

"What gives," the man started, "is that with it being later in the day than you usually show up, I've had the time to get them washed and sorted. I was about to start shelving some of them when you came in." The sounds the other Haibane made sounded impressed. Kana said they should wait a little longer in the day every time they came if this was the result; a sentiment shared by the rest.

"For you as is custom you may pick one set of clothes from the rack over there," the man told Ranma and waved his hand toward a rack Ranma could not see from his position. "Only one set."

Hikari, momentarily distracted by the box of donated clothes, spoke up to the man. "Sorry to ask, but we need two sets. There is another New Feather, but she was too shy to come with us." Kana muttered something under her breath that sounded to Ranma like 'shy is not how I would describe her', but the shopkeeper didn't hear and took it in stride.

"That's fine, as long as she has a feather and a signature with you?" Hikari pulled both items out of a small pouch she carried and gave them to the man. He looked suspiciously at the glossy black feather for a moment and then sighed. "Well, this should do. I'm sure if you were trying to pull a fast one on me I'll know eventually." And with that he pulled out a ledger and placed the feather and note into a small box with the same symbol engraved into it that Ranma had seen on the notebooks the other Haibane carried.

The shopkeeper sat on a stool behind the counter when he was done marking the ledger and looked in Ranma's direction as he perused the clothing rack. Although he couldn't see the shopkeeper, he still heard the question that was addressed to the girls.

"So, what's his story? Never seen you Haibane come here with a boy before. I thought they only came from the other place."

"We aren't sure," Nemu said, holding a green blouse up for inspection. "We've never had a boy hatch from Old Home before, it's true. There are a lot of things about Ranma we don't understand. Why hatch here and why are his wings so large? Why were there two Cocoons when we've only ever had one before? And why did the girl have black wings? We're as clueless about these things as anyone, but perhaps we'll find out one day soon."

"Uh huh," the shopkeeper said non-committally. "Well, it's not any of my business really. His name is Ranma, you said?" Nemu nodded, and the shopkeeper turned his head to face him. "Find anything yet, Ranma?"

Ranma was staring at the set of clothes he held. They felt familiar to him but he couldn't place how or why. He was holding a pair of black silk pants that were a bit baggy with plenty of room to move around in. By the way they looked, Ranma bet he could do all sorts of things while wearing them without being restricted by them. Draped over his other arm was a red shirt that was on the same hanger as the pants. The shirt was also silk, tied closed in the front with small loops of silk on one side and similarly small wooden buttons on the other side. The sleeves were a little long on him, but if he folded the cuffs back it would fit nicely and display a white lining from inside. Ranma turned and approached the counter holding the clothes.

"I really like these ones." The shopkeeper looked at the set Ranma held out to him. Without saying anything about them he called out to Kuu, who had been assigned the task of finding something for Nabiki. Kuu came bounding to the counter with a cute dress with some frills on the hem.

"Kuu," Ranma started, "I really don't think Nabiki will like that. It's not her style."

"You don't? Why not?" Kuu looked up at him interestedly. Kana also looked at the dress.

"Blech. That might look good on some of us, Kuu, but Ranma is probably right. I don't think frills will be to her taste." Kana looked at the shirt Ranma had picked out for himself. "Nice choice, it's kind of like mine!"

Hikari looked at Ranma slightly puzzled. "She might not like it, but what makes you think it isn't her style? It's not like any of us knew her from before."

Outwardly, Ranma shrugged. Inwardly he wondered at the thought. He didn't know how he knew it wasn't Nabiki's style, but he was certain he knew it. He put it in the back burner of his mind to work out later though. Maybe he just was good at pinpointing what people liked.

While Ranma was thinking about this, Hikari had retrieved another set of clothing. This one, Ranma thought, was more like Nabiki's style, though he still didn't know why he was sure of it. The blouse Hikari had brought was simple in design. It buttoned up about halfway from the neck and had a folded collar. The was a breast pocket with an embroidered halo and the words 'Heaven Bound', also embroidered on it. The shirt itself was powder blue. Along with the shirt was a pair of jeans, obviously fitted for girls. She had also found a pair of shoes.

Hikari noticed the lack of shoes for Ranma and asked him about this.

"Nah, I think these sandals should work fine," He said, indicating the wooden sandals he wore from Old Home.

"Nice as they are, Ranma, we will need them for the next Haibane when they come." Ranma conceded after a moments deliberation and looked around a small shelf with boots and other footwear. He settled in the end on a pair of black slippers with a rubber sole.

With all their purchases on the table, the man took their slips of paper and Ranma's feather, all of which went into the box, and then paused, looking at Ranma.

"Turn around please, I need to get an idea of how to do this."

"Oh don't worry about it," Hikari said brightly. "I'm sure we won't have any issue making the wing slits ourselves."

The shopkeeper looked more than a little skeptical at that, and raised an eyebrow at the way Ranma's robe was rigged about the shoulders.

"I'm sure you do well with cotton and linen, and on normal wings, but silk is a very different material to work with, and I doubt the traditional slits will work here. Besides, I did it last time, I might as well make it traditional to do it for the first outfit for you Haibane." And with that he pulled a measuring tape and started work.

It took only twenty minutes or so to manage the new option for wing-slits on the silk shirt. Instead of the typical style, the end result was to put the shirt on with slits that went all the way through the top and had extra cloth that would button over the tops of the wings. Luckily, because of the amout of silk that needed to be cut from the slits themselves, and an inch taken from the cuff of each sleeve, there was enough extra silk to make it look like it was originally made this way. The girls opinion of the shopkeeper went up another notch.

"How did you get so good at this," Kana asked him as they readied to leave.

"My wife and I don't make much here, so I learned to alter clothing to make it last longer. It saves a lot of money when you can make thick infant clothing become light summer clothing when they turn three just by letting all the folds out." Kana stared wide-eyed in surprise, then without saying a word turned and walked out of the shop. The rest of the girls and Ranma bowed politely expressing their thanks and followed suit.

Nabiki sat on the bed thinking. It hadn't been long since the others had left for town, and she was grateful for a bit of solitude to think and come to terms with everything that had happened to her in the last 24 hours. The solitude and quiet might have been absolute, but Reki, though quiet herself, was standing just outside the door to a balcony overlooking the courtyard, finishing off a cigarette.

That the girls welcomed her and the boy Ranma into their 'Old Home' was comforting. Especially considering the reaction she received from the two Young Feather boys. Hana had been brave and approached her, and that was good. It showed there was a possibility that she wouldn't be shunned by _everyone_ for her black wings. Still even that wasn't her greatest concern.

Nabiki had no memory of her past. She had no way of knowing what kind of a person she had been, so she likewise was not certain of what kind of person she would be. Her wings marked her as a bad Haibane, she was told, so did that mean she was an evil person before? She didn't feel like she was. Evil or no, it was difficult for Nabiki to come to terms with the way her life was expected to be from here. It was as though she knew there was a goal to work toward, but she didn't really know what that goal was nor how to attain it. In short, she hadn't figured out how to rebuild a life for herself, even considering she had no clue what her life had been to rebuild.

With a frustrated groan, Nabiki flopped sideways onto the bed. Reki stepped back into the room, her cigarette finished and resting in a glass tray on the balcony's table.

"So how do you feel, really?"

Nabiki looked up at her. After a moment's contemplation she decided to be honest. "Like my life is spinning out of control, and I can't tell if that is normal for me or not." Nabiki saw the tiniest curve up of Reki's mouth, as if the comment was reminding her of something she found funny.

"Yeah, that happens more often than not. Most of the New Feathers feel that way. Oh not all of them. Kuu has always been eager, and Ranma seems to be accepting much quicker than most. Kana wouldn't come out of a filthy room for two days after she had hatched, and that was because she had been summoned a second time to the Renmei. They weren't pleased with her, but she came back feeling better. Most of the Young Feathers cry for a while then adapt to their new life fairly well. It's part of my job, alongside the House Mother, to help them acclimate and learn what they need to know."

Nabiki looked away thinking some more. Reki, it seemed, had not finished talking though.

"It was rough for me too, in it's own way. I came here as a Young Feather, but like you, I didn't have the beautiful charcoal gray feathers everyone else has." Nabiki turned her head again to look at Reki, her eyes a little wider than usual. "It's true. My wings came in spotted with black. Not a solid black like yours, but it still frightened the others."

"So, what, are you telling me they'll lighten on their own? I highly doubt that. These," she gestured toward her own wings, "aren't spotted." Nabiki stopped herself from sighing, if only barely. "If wings like ours are so rare, there must be a reason for it. Why does it happen, Reki? Why are my wings black and why did yours start spotted?"

Reki paused for a moment, picking out the best way to word her answer. "It is said that the Haibane who are born with black in their wings are Sinbound Haibane. The Sinbound are those Haibane who will never find peace. Their dreams are nightmares, and when their Day of Flight comes, they will not be ready. What happens to them after that, no one knows. No one knows what happens to any Haibane after their Day of Flight, but for the Sinbound we aren't even sure it could be called a Day of Flight. For the Sinbound, that not knowing eats away and terrifies us."

"So basically, I'm going to go through hell while I'm here, and then go to hell?"

"That's one way to put it."

"Great. Just great."

"But you aren't alone. I too was born Sinbound. That is why I know as much."

"Your wings are not black anymore, so that would mean you aren't Sinbound anymore, right? There is a way to overcome that and have our Day of Flight then, correct?"

Reki looked away from her, ashamed of what she was about to say. "I don't know, Nabiki. The reason no one sees spots on my wings is because I dye them. If I didn't add the dying medicine every few days everyone would see them. The Communicator tells me that there is a way, but he won't tell me how it is done." Reki's voice took on a hint of anger at the end.

Nabiki sat up with surprise etched on her face. _I'm not sure how much more I can take._ "But why are my wings black? What did I do to deserve black wings?"

Reki sighed empathically. She herself wasn't sure of this one, so she went on what she knew. "It is said that it has something to do with who you were, but no one really knows. As you have noticed, we Haibane have no memory of the past. It's more likely they say that because people are afraid of the Sinbound. As if our sin would become theirs. That's why I dye my wings, Nabiki. I couldn't stand the way people looked at me, as if I was diseased or had committed a terrible crime."

Reki paused for a moment, and then asked a little hesitantly, "I could get the medicine for you. It will help you fit in better."

Nabiki thought about this for a few minutes. It seemed like a good idea, but by now everyone in Old Home had to know that there was a girl with black wings living here now. What would be the point in trying to hide it?

"Nah, that's okay. I'll just have to deal with things as they come. I am sure I can find a way to plan ahead and come out okay." A few more minutes of silence passed before Nabiki spoke up again. "Reki, how long have you been a Haibane?"

"Hmm... I'm not sure. I was a Young Feather when I hatched, and I haven't been one for around seven years. The only person who is here now that was here when I hatched was the House Mother. I suppose that is why everyone assumes I should be the leader, and why they give me a hard time. Nemu is the only one here that remembers me from when I was a Young Feather though."

_Over seven years. I hope my Day of Flight comes sooner than that. I don't want to have to be in hell's waiting room forever. Wait... What does that mean?_ "What exactly _is _the 'Day of Flight'? You've mentioned it, but not what it really is, just that we want to have one."

"The Day of Flight comes when it is time for a Haibane to leave their nest. They go out into the Western Woods usually. What happens beyond that is not really known. We only know that the Haibane will go beyond the Wall on that day."

"The Wall?"

"Yes. There is a wall that surrounds this place. There is a lot of area, but it is all surrounded by walls and no one is allowed to go outside them except for the Toga; a group of people who come in regularly to trade with the town. No one here knows anything of the Outside. The haibane are forbidden from going near the wall, and are never to touch it."

"Why? What will happen if we do?"

"The Haibane who touches the wall will die."

This shook Nabiki up again hard. _So I'm a prisoner. Held captive in a place I've never known and my memories are taken from me. I know no one and no one knows me. What did I ever do to deserve such a fate?_ Unable to take anymore, Nabiki finally broke down and started to cry. Almost immediately she felt Reki's comforting arm drape across her shoulders and she turned to cling on to the only lifeline she felt she had.

For several long minutes Nabiki released all of the emotion she had been desperately trying to hold back since first waking in Old Home. When her sobs reduced to sniffles and little whimpers she heard Reki cooing and shushing her softly, like a mother trying to sooth her weeping child, or an elder sister comforting a younger one after her first break up.

"Let it all out, Nabiki. I had this moment myself, long ago. Just let it all go." It was a few minutes more before Nabiki's breathing had calmed and her grief relaxed. Reki continued. "Now then, just try to forget about what all of this means and cheer up. This life isn't so bad, and if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm never far away." Nabiki nodded her head, still cradled in Reki's embrace.

Reki gently pushed Nabiki away so she could look into her eyes. They were puffy and red, but they were also slowly losing their look of complete hopelessness. "Shall we see about getting you that room? We wouldn't want the Young Feathers spreading rumors you are sharing a room with a boy at your age, would we?" Nabiki laughed a little.

"No, if anyone is going to spread rumors about me, I think I would prefer to have started it so I can control it."

"That's the spirit!"

Nabiki dressed in a robe not unlike the brown one Ranma had put on earlier. It was not comfortable in the least, but it ran no risk of having the malfunction he had suffered earlier either. This one was a little more worn out and had signs of stains on it, but was otherwise clean. And so, ready to get started on a more permanent sleeping arrangement, the two girls left and began checking for a suitable room.

The search wasn't long, per se, but it still took time. Some of the rooms couldn't be used at all, and not a single one was clean. After checking almost half of the rooms unoccupied in Old Home, including a lot of coughing from dust and a failed attempt to reattach a door that came off it's hinges when Nabiki pulled on it, they managed to find one that was in good enough repair and that Nabiki liked the feel of.

Cleaning the room took hours. Nabiki was persistent and dedicated to make sure she got every bit of dust and dirt out. Between Reki and herself they worked on the room until it was immaculate; sweeping, moping, dusting and digging into the corners of it. When they had finished Reki said it was probably the cleanest room in all of Old Home, which made Nabiki shudder at the thought of the bathroom and kitchen. As the cleaning supplies were stored in the closest bathroom she was able to see for herself and sighed in relief that it was up to her minimum standard, considering it was used by four or five girls. The kitchen she would look at later.

"Its fitting you chose this room, you know. Just below your window is where you cocoon was," Reki said when Nabiki returned from the bathroom. She looked around the now clean room. The floor was made of some cold stone that while a bit age-worn was still in good condition. There was a bed on the west side of it that had once been beautiful brass, but like the floor also showed many signs of wear, and was now more comfortable looking than fashionable. There was one window in the middle of the northern wall, and it was bare, having no curtain. A small writing desk was on the east side. The desk was made of a red colored wood that had no finish on it. There was a large sheet of leather covering most of the surface to provide some smoothness to write on so as to keep the papers from ripping while you wrote. A matching chair stood in front of the desk. A small closet was in the southern wall across from the bed and next to the door. It was also three rooms over from Reki's.

Nabiki and Reki stood in the door frame smiling at the end result, then nodding at each other left to return to the guest room to see if there was anything Nabiki wanted to take for her room to make it look a little less spartan. In the end, they settled on a single potted plant and a picture depicting a forest scene. Reki took them and left while Nabiki stepped out onto the balcony to take a deep breath of fresh air.

Movement from below caught her eye. At the far end of the courtyard standing underneath an archway that led out stood a figure in a dark robe. The figure was doing something with a row of hooks and left an official looking notice on a cork board that hung upon the wall. After completing his task, he left past the archway and out of sight.

The door opened behind Nabiki and Reki stepped in.

"See something? Is Daiku playing in the fountain again?" Nabiki turned and looked at her with the tiniest hint of surprise on her face, then looked back down into the courtyard to see some of the Young Feathers entering it to play. She turned back to Reki.

"No, but I saw someone in a dark robe leaving. They put something on a notice board."

"Oh. That would be a messenger from the Haibane Renmei. They will probably have brought supplies for you and Ranma and a summons to the temple. Let's go take a look, shall we?"

Nabiki nodded and followed Reki into the hall. As they walked they continued to discuss the visitor.

"Who exactly are the Haibane Renmei, Reki? I mean, what do they do and why are they here?"

Reki looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before answering. "The Haibane Renmei, also called the Charcoal Feather Federation, look out for the Haibane. It is because of their efforts that we are able to work and live alongside the townspeople. They are supposed to help guide the Haibane toward the Day of Flight as well, but I don't know how. Their advice is cryptic at best, and they rarely give a direct answer. Not to me, anyway."

"So, they're like our taskmasters?" Nabiki didn't like the sound of that.

"Oh no. I don't like them much myself, but they are much more like counselors that also look out for our needs. Their 'guidance' is hard to get a grasp on, but the rest of their help is easy to spot and very useful to us. Your halo, for example, is made by the Haibane."

Nabiki looked up at the glow of the ring she couldn't see above her head. She wasn't sure she wanted a permanent night light to try sleeping with, but as it also gave a gentle warmth over her head she wasn't going to complain.

"You could also think of them as a kind of father that treat us like their children, I suppose." Nabiki arched an eyebrow at this strange concept. "Seriously, think about it a moment."

Nabiki did. _Enforcing the rules but generally lets us make our mistakes, takes care of our basic needs and lends us guidance so we can live as best a life we can. Yeah, I can see that. I'll be damned if I ever call one of them 'Daddy' though._ Nabiki grinned a little. Reki saw this and shared a small smile, correctly guessing why.

They reached the notice board and first looked at the table. Sitting on a pair of small handkerchiefs were two rectangular plaques of wood with the name 'Ranma' or 'Nabiki' on them, carved and painted in white. Nabiki picked hers up and noticed her name done the same way only in red on the reverse side. She asked Reki, who was reading the notice, what they were for.

"Nameplates," she said partially distracted, but still pointed to the hooks just to the right of the notice board. "White means you are in Old Home, red means you are out." She continued to read the notice. Nabiki hung the two nameplates on hooks, setting Ranma's to show the red side.

"You have been summoned to the temple."

"Why me?" Nabiki looked at Reki curiously.

"Don't worry, it isn't just you. Ranma has been summoned as well. It's pretty standard. The Communicator will want to meet you and give you your first bit of advice. He will also need the halo molds back."

"The Communicator?"

"He is the only one of the Haibane Renmei we are allowed to talk to. He also communicates with the Toga, who are the ones that bring things from beyond the Wall."

There was a clattering from behind and the two Haibane turned to see an older woman bent down, scooping up a pile of crayons into a small box. She had a bun of silver hair that was very neatly done up and wore clothing very victorian in design. The gray dress and lace on the cuffs and neckline made her look like a grandmother or great-grandmother that brooked no nonsense. She looked up momentarily and the look on her face emphasized the no nonsense vibe Nabiki got from her. She bent down herself to help.

"That's kind of you, dear, but these bones are as strong as they are old, so I don't need the help," the woman finished as she stood up, waving away Nabiki's hand. Crooking the box into an elbow she dusted her dress a little and then looked Nabiki up and down. She gazed slightly longer at Nabiki's wings. Nabiki hid her annoyance at this.

"You must be the new girl the Young Feathers won't stop talking about. Hana was going on about helping clean up a room for you, but she isn't getting out of lessons that easily." Nabiki only just realized with that statement that the little girl had been absent, for all her excitement at helping to clean a room with them. Nabiki gave the woman a respectful bow, and missed the raised eyebrow that had lowered before she rose back up.

"I've been named Nabiki, ma'am."

"Yes, well, don't go causing any trouble and we won't have any problems then," the woman stated briskly. Turning to Reki she reminded her to return to helping with the Young Feathers the next day. Reki nodded with a sigh. The woman walked past them and vanished through a door into a section of Old Home Nabiki had not yet been in.

"She seems unpleasant, but maybe Ranma is right and most people won't care that my wings are black."

Reki was staring at the door where the woman had vanished. "That was the House Mother, and I wouldn't bet on it. She is so old and has been here for so long that I doubt anything would surprise her anymore. The Young Feathers do what she tells them to though, even if they don't like it. Lunch is particularly difficult with them." Reki turned to face Nabiki but immediately changed her gaze to something further away.

"Speaking of Ranma," Reki said, "here he comes. Looks like their trip to town is over."

"Hey Nabiki!" Ranma's voice called out to her. Nabiki took a deep breath and sighed. As much as she wanted to shower and get into some real clothes, she also wanted some alone time to process everything that had happened today. She turned to face the group coming across the courtyard and saw several of the Young Feathers swarming around them, asking questions about their trip. Ranma walked towards Reki and herself with purpose, holding a small bag and a grin upon his face.

"Gotcha some clothes. I hope they fit, we didn't know your size, so we guessed." He jostled the bag a little, indicating the contents to be said clothes. Nabiki silently prayed they fit and second-guessed her decision to remain behind.

Once Ranma was within reach he held out the bag and she took it, peering inside. The clothes were neatly folded and looked new. The shoes that were with them were a little scuffed and had a little wear on the inside, so they certainly weren't new, but a closer look had Nabiki guessing they were only worn for a few weeks at most prior. She sneaked a quick sniff while she had it closer to her face, the closer inspection covering it up. The shoes had a clean smell, thank goodness.

"I hope they fit too, Ranma. These will probably look good on me."

"Yeah, it is nice to get into some good clothes."

Nabiki got a good look at Ranma. His clothes were somehow familiar to her, though she couldn't place why. _They look so natural on him it's almost like they were made just for him. Maybe they were the same kind of clothes he always wore before... Not that I would know, right?_

"I'm surprised you found something like that though," Nabiki said to Ranma. "It looks brand new." Kana had approached the group while Nabiki was talking. It was she that answered Nabiki.

"The guy at the shop lets us have one outfit new when we first arrive. After that we can only get what's in the used boxes. Often we have to wash them before we can wear them because we thought he was lazy, but today we learned he just doesn't start washing them until later than we usually show up."

Nabiki grimaced at the idea of getting dirty clothes. She made a mental note to go with them next time to make sure she got clothing that at least looked as close to new as they could be. What Ranma said next had her failing to conceal her disgust.

"Between Kuu and Nemu, you almost got a frilly dress instead." He chuckled at the look on her face. Kana was outright laughing.

"Just don't let Nemu or Hana know how you feel about dresses. They both like wearing them. Hana looks especially cute when she is pouting though, so maybe tell her if you want to see it. Oh, and Ranma?" Ranma turned to look at Kana. "There is a notice on the board summoning you and Nabiki to the temple. It's set for tomorrow." With that, Kana walked off toward the nearest door leading inside.

Reki turned to Nabiki. "Shall we go get you changed? We should head to the guest room for it, everyone will want to see you in it and make any adjustments it might need."

With a nod, the trio headed to the guest room, followed shortly by the other Haibane that had gone to town.

Ranma sat in the guest room with the other Haibane. They mostly were talking to Reki about the trip to town. Kuu was particularly excitable about it and gesticulated largely as she described how much Ranma ate. Ranma for his part blushed slightly though if confronted about it he'd deny he had done any such thing. He looked toward the same door that he'd been on the other side of while changing into his brown robe before the trip. Nabiki was in there, changing into the clothes he and Hikari had selected for her. Rakka had volunteered to help her get into them, as the first few times putting a blouse on over wings was difficult while you got used to the wing-slits.

"You won't be able to sneak a peak with all of us in here, you know." Ranma started at the sudden whisper in his ear. He turned to see Kana grinning mischievously at him. He spluttered out denials of any such idea to which she laughed. When asked by the others what was funny Kana just told them it was a private joke.

Ranma pushed Kana gently away from himself. He didn't have those kinds of thoughts about anyone, including Nabiki. He didn't really know any of them and thoughts of that nature hadn't occurred to him. Most especially since two of the girls, Kuu and Hana, called him 'big brother'. His thoughts were put on the background with the opening of said door.

Rakka stepped out of the little side room, a smile wide on her face. Ranma thought if that smile was any bigger, she'd look like Kuu, and her smiles almost split her face at times. She made a grand, sweeping gesture and said, "Presenting, Nabiki!" Everyone shifted in their chair to get a good look.

Nabiki stepped out of the room. The clothes, it turned out, did fit. Very well, in fact. The jeans hugged her hips and gave her curves a pleasant emphasis to her femininity. The polo style shirt was worn and the pale purple set off her chocolate brown eyes nicely. When you took in the whole ensemble with the halo'd pocket and her black wings, the outfit gave her a sassy look. She posed for them with a hand resting on her hip.

"I think I pull this off well," Nabiki said with a smirk. There was applause and a few cheers from the other girls. Ranma stared for a moment not sure what he thought. "No clapping, Ranma? A girl likes to hear she looks nice you know." Nabiki moved closer to him and bent over to stare him in the face. He turned away and muttered that she looked nice. Nabiki patted his cheek.

"There now, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

Ranma desperately wanted a change of subject. He didn't know how to handle the sudden invasion of his personal space, particularly by someone he swore was _trying_ to make him uncomfortable.

"Where'd Rakka go," he asked after a moment.

"She's said she was going to make some punch for everyone. She'll be back in a moment."

"Hey Nabiki," Kuu began, taking her attention away from Ranma. Inwardly he thanked Kuu for the save. "What did you do all day?"

"Reki and I prepared my room, so we spent most of the day cleaning it up. We finished not too long before you all returned, so we've been talking. I also got to meet the House Mother, though I never did get her name?" Nabiki turned to Reki questioningly.

Reki obliged an answer. "We never gave it to you. In all honestly, I don't think anyone here knows her name. We just call her the House Mother, and she is fine with that."

"Yeah, the old lady can be a real grouch though," Kana piped in. "How did she take to you?"

"Not bad, I guess. She didn't seem to care about my wings being black, she just told me to keep my nose clean and everything would be fine." Ranma scoffed a little. Nabiki glared at him. "What, don't think I can be a good girl, Ranma?

Ranma looked a little surprised at himself. He wasn't sure why he had scoffed. He didn't really know Nabiki very well yet, so he didn't really think it was fair of him to imply that she was nosy.

"I didn't mean that," Ranma said to her. "I mean, I don't _think_ I know you well enough to say either way." He wasn't certain, but he thought he saw a look of confusion cross Nabiki's face.

Kuu laughed teasingly and said, "Oh I don't know, Nabiki. You didn't get the dress because Ranma said it wasn't your style. Maybe he _does_ know you from before you two hatched here."

"Don't be ridiculous," Nemu said calmly. "No one remembers things from before they hatch here, we all know that much. Ranma just might be more observant than others." Hikari giggled a little and voiced her agreement with Nemu.

Ranma remained in thought about this idea though. _There has never been a Haibane with wings my size or Nabiki's color before either. Is it possible that we actually did know each other from before? I seem to know her taste in clothes, and either she knows how to make me uncomfortable or she's just lucky. No, it's probably just chance._

While Ranma sorted out these thoughts the door opened to reveal Hana, followed closely behind by Rakka whom carried a tray with several glasses and a pitcher on it.

"I'm back! I hope you all like the punch. It's cherr-eek!"

Hana had stumbled on a floorboard that protruded up slightly and fell in front of Rakka. Not being able to see a new tripping hazard Rakka followed quickly after and the tray of punch went flying at the table. As Ranma was lost in his thoughts he did not notice the fluids flying at him, and so the shock of cold punch splashing all over him was total.

Ranma felt more than just the cold liquid as it coated his head and wings from behind. A strangely familiar tingling sensation came over him and as he sat he could swear he had partially slumped in the chair since the other girls seemed taller than before. To be fair, several of them had stood up and backed away to avoid the fruity flavored drink's assault on the table. He turned in his chair to look at his wings, partially dyed red now from the punch, and spoke with a shiver.

"Oh that's _cold!_" No one moved. No one spoke. Ranma looked around. The girls were all staring at him in shock except Nabiki. For some reason, she looked amused. "What is it? We can get the red out, can't we?" It was then that Ranma realized something. His voice was higher pitched than usual.

The first person to recover from their state was Nemu. She looked into his eyes and asked aloud. "What did you put into that punch, Rakka? It turned his black hair red." Kana was not so calm.

"Are you serious, Nemu!? Look a little lower! What. The. Hell?!" And she poked Ranma's chest. Her finger pressed into flesh earlier than it should have and Ranma felt something strange about that as he looked down. His shirt was being pressed outward from his chest further than he was used to, and a dark, sinking feeling gave him a hunch as to why.

"I'd say that I was forgetting something," Ranma stated almost woodenly, "but since I'm supposed to have forgotten everything I wouldn't have known I'd forgotten it, huh?" He paused a moment and no one spoke. "I hope the stains get out."

"Who cares about the stain, what the hell happened to you?!" Kana was starting to get hysterical, but by this time the other girls had finally come back to themselves. Nemu and Reki were trying to calm her down and finding only marginal success as she continued to rant. The room was temporary chaos.

Looking around the room and trying to figure out his own situation, Ranma noticed there were two girls looking at him not in shock or horror, but thoughtfully. Nabiki he could swear was somehow not surprised, only looking as though she had just remembered something when she looked at him. Hana on the other hand had stepped up to stand next to him and hesitantly grabbed his sleeve.

"Big brother?" She asked quietly. Her soft voice somehow had the affect of silencing the room. The other girls stopped, some in positions almost comical, to watch the little girl looking at Ranma, who no longer seemed an appropriate candidate for any masculine title. "Big brother, are you okay?"

"He'll be fine," Nabiki said calmly. "He just turned into a girl, it's not like anything bad happened to him." The eyes of the other girls turned to stare at Nabiki but she paid them no mind and instead continued to talk to Hana.

"Just think of it has having a big brother _and_ a big sister in the same person."

Hana looked up at the ceiling and thought for a moment. Slowly a smile grew on her face and she turned to Ranma.

"Big sister-brother!" Hana squealed in delight and hugged his arm. Ranma slapped the palm of his free hand to his forehead. The last thing he wanted was a nickname like that. He thought about the change and unbidden to his mind he saw a flash of bamboo poles and a tea kettle. He wasn't sure what the bamboo was about, but the kettle gave him an idea.

"Can someone get me some hot water? I'd like to get this punch out if I can."

"I'll set some water to boil. This is my fault after all," Rakka said. She looked glad for something to do to give her time to come to grips with what had happened.

Reki spoke up. "Make sure to get some cool water first. If there's one thing I learned teaching all these brats it is that hot water will probably set the stains permanently if we don't use cool water first."

As the Reki and Rakka went about to prepare the water, Kuu sidled up to Ranma's other side. When she asked him what could have caused him to suddenly become a her, he replied, "I dunno. Guess I'm just cursed or something. Maybe an evil witch in my past life cursed me."

"I doubt it. The Haibane are born with no memory of the past, and no effects from the past," Kana said scowling.

"But Kana," Nabiki interjected, "if the Haibane have no memories of the past how would we know nothing _from_ our past affects us still?"

Kana looked like she was going to speak but then stopped and conceded the theory as possible. "Well, it might explain why he's here in Old Home and not Abandoned Factory like the other boys. After all, looks like Ranma is a girl at least half the time." Nabiki smirked.

Ranma on the other hand groaned. In short order the girls had mostly dealt with the shock and had two bowls of water and a pair of towels to help get the stain out of Ranma's feathers and the shoulders of his shirt. Nabiki was staring at the bowl of hot water. Without preamble, she suddenly grabbed Ranma's hand and plunged it into the bowl.

Ranma felt the familiar tingling again, but the pain of scalding his had was more pronounced.

"Ow! What you do that for?!" Ranma jerked his hand back and started blowing on it to cool it off. He and everyone else noticed him returning to male form either by the pitch of his voice or, for those working on him, the sudden increase of height. Kuu was smacked by a wing she had been studying intently to make sure it was clean. Instead of being upset as she got to her feet she just giggled at the idea of how it must have looked. Ranma noticed the change too.

"Oh hey, I'm cured!"

"I don't think it's that simple, Ranma," Nabiki told him. "I think cold water will just do it to you again." Kana glanced suspiciously at Nabiki, a look which Ranma missed.

"Why do you think that, Nabiki? Maybe it was a one-time thing," Ranma said hopefully.

"Only one way to find out." Nabiki poured a cup of cold water she had onto his leg. Sure enough, Ranma shrunk in size and his chest pushed his shirt out again. She dipped his hand into the hot bowl again, much to his protest, and once again he was male.

"As entertaining as this might be," said an irate Kana, "Could you stop that? It makes it hard to get this done, and if his wings are stained red people might think he's violent." Ranma jerked his head to look horrified at Kana. He understood what she was implying and didn't like it one bit. Thankfully Nabiki did as requested.

Several minutes later, with Hana sitting happily on her 'big sister-brother's' lap and after a long examination by Reki to be sure they got it all, the eldest Haibane announced, "We should be getting on with what we need to do. It's going to get dark soon and Ranma still needs to pick a room to move into."

A chorus of agreement came from the other girls and they left the room, leaving Ranma behind.

Ranma stood up and stretched his arms over his head. A soft whistle of appreciation caught his ear and he looked down to see Nabiki had remained as well, and was grinning at his abs, which had been exposed just slightly as he raised his arms. He lowered them and ended the unintended show. When Nabiki gave the slightest hint of a pout he grinned internally. She looked up at him.

"Ranma, there's something we need to talk about." She stood up.

"What's up, Nabiki?"

"I think we used to know each other before all this."

Ranma looked at her confused.

"What makes you think so?"

"Well, let's look at it logically. There are things about us that surprise the others but not us. Your transformation for example. I was not expecting it, but I wasn't surprised by it either. And you said that in town at the store you knew I wouldn't like wearing anything really girly. You weren't sure how you knew, but you 'just knew'. These aren't the only things, but I think it's safe to say that somehow, we knew each other before we became Haibane."

"I think you're right," Ranma said thoughtfully. "I was thinking about it earlier, but just figured I was desperately hoping that there was something familiar I could cling to. This whole thing isn't easy for me."

"Not easy for you?" Nabiki looked skeptical. "You don't seem to be having an issue adapting to me, 'big sister-brother'."

Ranma frowned at the title. "Just because I don't show it doesn't mean I'm not feeling it. If nothing else, I think I would feel better if we _did_ know each other from before. It would mean something to me that I wasn't abandoned to this new life completely."

Nabiki looked away. Thinking back to her episode with Reki earlier didn't feel as painful as she thought it would, but it wasn't pain free. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but she doubted it. No one could go through the experience of watching someone change genders right before their eyes and _not_ be a little traumatized by it the first time. That she didn't feel anything like that was, to her, a strong support for her theory. After a moment of silence, Ranma spoke up again.

"Do you think we were friends before, Nabiki?" She looked at him. She thought she saw a tiny spark of hope in his eyes as he asked the question.

"I don't know, Ranma. I don't dislike you now, so I don't think we were hostile to each other at the very least."

Ranma hummed at that. "Do you think we could be friends this time around?"

"What, like this is a second chance for us?" Ranma nodded his head. Nabiki gave him a tiny smile. "Why not? Maybe we were friends before, maybe not. I think _this_ time though, I'm going to go with being friends from the start."

Ranma smiled broadly at her, then shock and concern marred his features as she felt herself drop to the floor in sudden exhaustion.

"Nabiki, are you okay?!"

"Y-yes, Ranma. I think the day took more out of me than it did you, that's all. I'm just... really tired."

Ranma helped her to the bed that remained and helped her lay down. "No surprise. Our bodies went through a big change recently." Under his breath she heard him mutter 'three times for me'. Her senses were starting to dull in the familiar warm embrace of sleep, but before it completely claimed her she could hear Ranma speak again.

"I will protect you as best I can, Nabiki. Sleep well."

All day Nabiki's emotions had been a roller coaster of turmoil. She'd felt panic, fear and confusion. She had cried out of a sense of hopelessness. Now, as sleep claimed her, a tiny tear escaped and landed on the pillow. It was a tear of hope. She knew that through everything that was going to come, she was no longer alone.

_**Author's Notes**_

Thank you for reading the second chapter! I noticed a few mistakes re-reading chapter one, so I made sure to go over this one again before posting, and I hope I got them all.

(Insert Standard Disclaimer about not owning anything here)

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Look forward to the next one soon!


	3. Chapter 3

_Ranma helped her to the bed that remained and helped her lay down. "No surprise. Our bodies went through a big change recently." Under his breath she heard him mutter 'three times for me'. Her senses were starting to mute in the familiar warm embrace of sleep, but before it completely claimed her she could hear Ranma speak again._

_"__I will protect you as best I can, Nabiki. Sleep well."_

_All day Nabiki's emotions had been a roller coaster of turmoil. She'd felt panic, fear and confusion. She had cried out of a sense of hopelessness. Now, as sleep claimed her, a tiny tear escaped and landed on the pillow. It was a tear of hope. She knew that through everything that was going to come, she was no longer alone._

Haibane Ranma Redone: Chapter 3

That light can travel fast is something undeniable by science. Light traveling from the sun can reach our moon in mere minutes while it takes us hours to travel a sliver of a fraction of the distance. That sunlight bouncing from the moon to the world takes even less time and moves no slower. If not for the truth that light has a natural tendency to land lightly upon solid objects unless focused, we would be pulverized by the speed it travels. This gentle moonlight is the same that graced Nabiki's sleeping face through the window. A face that twitched within the embrace of a restless dream.

_"__Nabiki!"_

_She started internally at the voice. It brought her out of her thoughts and back into the present. She could not let her emotions show on her face though. Not to anyone. She had a reputation to uphold after all._

_"__What is it, Akane," she asked the girl who had pulled her from her reverie._

_"__Are you okay, sis? You seemed spaced out."_

_Nabiki looked across the table at her sister. She was a year younger than herself and had black hair that just missed her shoulders. When the light hit it just right it appeared to have a slight bluish hint to it. She wore a pale yellow blouse and, though the table kept it from view, a baby blue skirt. Having been fully brought back from her thoughts, Nabiki recalled where she was, and with whom she was involving her time._

_The room itself was quite small. It had a table in the center that was littered with snacks of varying states of consumption. Surrounding it were two plush benches, almost couch quality but not quite making that standard. Past the table and into the deepest part of the little room was a slightly raised platform upon which stood a singing girl she knew. The song she didn't. Sitting next to her on the bench were two other girls, and across from her sat Akane and two boys._

_"__Yes, Akane. I'm fine. Is there a reason I shouldn't be?"_

_"__I don't know, you just... oh never mind. I'm up next. Those three don't stand a chance."_

_Two of 'those three' sat on either side of Nabiki. The third stood on the plinth smiling smugly at the score that was displaying on a screen for her song. _'Ugh, this is so stupid, but I couldn't find any other way to do this. I just hope it works.' _She glanced at Akane who was standing up to take her place on the stage. _'If my own little sister noticed, my masks are slipping horribly today.'

_Resetting her mask of indifference firmly in place she subtly looked at the other three girls and, in an exercise to calm her nerves, reaffirmed their positions in life in relation to hers._

_'_Singing Girl. Xian Pu, and an easily butchered name. Chinese Amazon who believes she is already married to Ranma. A real mess of a situation that though difficult, I'm sure I can figure out how to solve it. I'm missing something though and that bothers me.

'First to my right. Ukyou. Ranma's childhood friend and bound by dowry into betrothal. That he sees her only as a friend makes it easier if not for the loss of the dowry. Simply replacing the dowry may not work, but its a start.

'Second to my right. Kodachi. Psychopath. Stalks Ranma with criminal obsessiveness because he was the first boy to be kind to her. Dangerous when angered, and highly possessive. Has no restraint in what she will do if she deems it necessary.

'First to Akane's left. Ryouga. Status: Passed out. Rival/Best Friend of Ranma. Some bad blood between them, though Ranma doesn't see it that way. Not a concern right now.

'Second to Akane's left. Ranma. Chaotic Nexus of Nerima's madness. Has many good points, though most are overshadowed by more easily noticed faults. Asked me to help solve his fiancée problem.'

_Xian Pu took a seat where Akane had vacated and gave Ranma a starry-eyed look. She had received the best score so far all night for her performance and under normal circumstances Nabiki would have been able to fully appreciate it. Instead of the cheers of friends for a great performance there was a round of polite applause. This outing of karaoke was not friends coming together for fun like it seemed. To the girls at least, it was a battle._

_Akane took the microphone and stood center stage to perform her piece. She alternated glaring at the girls and trying to not glare at Ranma. Nabiki she avoided looking at entirely. Nabiki didn't mind though. Her mind was focused on other matters and she had calmed herself enough to be able to do what she had planned this get together for. In short order, Akane's song had finished, a decent score was given and she sat down to a group that with herself as the only exception was chatting with Ranma, vying for his attentions and hoping for his choice on the best one of them. _'It's now or never.'

_With that thought, Nabiki stood. The girls stopped to look at her expectantly. Instead of making an announcement or declaring their contest in need of Ranma's judgment however, she slowly picked up the microphone and stepped onto the stage. The girls looked a mixture of shock, betrayal and outrage, but none could find the ability to move from her spot as Nabiki selected a song from an American artist; "Bring Me to Life" by Evanescence. Taking a deep breath, Nabiki began to sing._

_For moments she was lost in the lyrics as she sang. She knew that among the girls present her singing voice was maybe 3__rd__ for quality. She wasn't much of a singer, and had mostly done it when she was dragged into it. This time though, as each word came from her lips she pushed out all of the emotions she had been shoving down and hiding behind her masks since the failed wedding between Ranma and her sister. As she finished the song, never having taken her eyes off Ranma, the pouring out of bottled emotion became too much and her masks cracked for all of them to see, if only a moment, that she wasn't playing this time. She was serious. She was looking for Ranma's reaction to her sudden more personal involvement in his problem._

The dance of moonlight across Nabiki's face ended as cloud obscured it. Nabiki lay there, wide-eyed and breathing heavily. Surprised more than anything by the content of her dream that was fading at an incredible pace she desperately put her mind to catalog anything she could retain for analysis. But as is often the case, all she could remember hours later as the sun rose was a dream of singing that left her feeling melancholy when she looked out to the balcony and saw Ranma sleeping peacefully on a cot.

Ranma woke slowly with a yawn and blinked a few times as his mind began to engage for the day. He looked around trying to remember where he was. Yesterday had been more exhausting than he let on, and he wasn't too surprised to find himself sleeping outside. He was on a cot, true, but sleeping out in the elements didn't bother him at all and he was intrigued by that. It hadn't rained on him, thankfully. He stretched for a minute to warm up his muscles from their nightly rest and as he finished he could hear footsteps coming from the hallway inside. He looked at the door just as it opened and two of the older Haibane walked in; Rakka and Nemu

Each carried a tray of foodstuffs. Rakka's tray held mostly fruits and berries while Nemu's tray included large slices of bread and a stack of bowls. They were engaged in conversation when they noticed him waving at them. Ranma made a light clicking sound with his tongue and pointed to Nabiki, still laying on the bed in the room. The two girls nodded and quietly set their trays on the large table in the room's center. Nemu waved him over once her hands were free and he obliged.

"Is Nabiki a light sleeper, Ranma," Nemu asked in a hushed tone.

"I'm not really sure," Ranma replied. "But we both had long days yesterday. It may be best we don't wake her. Maybe she gets cranky without her morning coffee or something."

"I know what you mean. I was always tired and sleepy when I was newly hatched too," Nemu said, nodding her head.

"I hear that you are still tired and sleepy all the time, Nemu," Rakka said snickering.

"Do you _want_ me to hit you?" Even as she said it, Nemu held the ghost of a smile on her lips. The two continued to exchange friendly banter for a moment before Ranma returned to the conversation.

"Is this where we usually have breakfast?" He was looking at the tray of food and his stomach gurgled with anticipation. While nothing he saw took a great amount of skill to make, it still looked delicious, and he hadn't had a dinner per se.

Rakka huffed a little before replying. "More or less."

"Reki bought this table while she was in town one day and brought it here. We aren't sure why she did, but as this room is also the largest one in Old Home and the table can seat so many of us it became the dining/guest room. The Young Feathers don't eat with us very often because the House Mother has them eat in the classroom on the south side of the courtyard. It would be crowded and noisy in here otherwise," Nemu explained.

The door to the hallway opened again and Kuu hopped in, followed by Kana, Hikari and Reki, who was carrying a large pot. The mittens she wore was enough to tell him there would be something hot for breakfast as well. Hikari had a few bottles in her hands and was talking to Kana. From what he could hear, they were talking about crows.

"Good morning girls," Ranma whispered loudly while motioning to Nabiki. Kuu had jumped high, to make a very energetic greeting Ranma guessed, and taking the hint crouched in mid-air to land like a cat on the floor with nary a sound. She waved to him from her crouch.

"I see our Newfeathers are up. Did you sleep well," Reki inquired.

"Yeah, how's the fender, gender-bender?" Kana chirped in with a sadistic grin. Ranma shot her an irritated glare but otherwise ignored the quip.

"I slept well, Reki. I don't know how well Nabiki is sleeping. We both had a rough day yesterday, but I think it was harder for her. She passed out not long after you all left." Ranma took a deep breath, collecting a scent from the pot that made his mouth water slightly. "That smells great! I bet Nabiki will be hungry when she wakes up because I know I am."

"I _am_ awake, you know."

All heads turned to where Nabiki lay on the bed. Her hair was tussled and messy and she looked back at them with bleary eyes. The blanket covering her slipped down as she rose to a sitting position, revealing clothes rumpled from having been slept in. She rubbed her eyes surreptitiously then stretched. After a quick yawn and look at her audience her brain decided to kick into gear and her eyes widened a fraction while she slammed a mask of indifference over her features.

"What," she asked stubbornly as the group still watched. Immediately there were stammers from the girls, making excuses or apologies to her. Ranma grinned broadly and picked up a steaming cup from a tray on the table. He wasn't sure what was in it, but he had a hunch Nabiki would want it.

"They are just seeing you in a new light," he said as he handed her the cup. She took it with both hands, wrapping her fingers around it to draw as much warmth as she could from the porcelain. She muttered something under her breath and looked into the cup.

"What is this?"

"It's tea," Hikari supplied. "A special blend of tea that the House Mother says has been her since she was little. The recipe, according to her, was conceived by the Haibane a very long time ago. It's supposed to help invigorate people in the morning."

Ranma looked over his shoulder back at the table to find Kuu, who was holding a cup and looking like she would slam a few of them if they weren't so hot. "Do you like this, Kuu?"

Kuu looked happily up from her cup. "Not really. The taste is bitter, but it works, so I have one every morning! Had mine on the way here." She offered the cup to Nemu who refused it, so she gave it to Reki instead.

Turning his attention back to Nabiki, Ranma asked, "been awake long?"

"Yes, Ranma. I have a habit of waking up before sunrise, bathing and cleaning myself up for the day, and _then_ going _back_ to sleep so I can look like this for everyone." Attentive as Ranma is, he missed the flat look on her face.

"Why would anyone do that?" Nabiki nearly dropped her cup.

Breakfast was an entertaining affair. Kana had started her newest hobby of seeing how many ways she could insult Ranma without him understanding the jibes. Although he didn't understand many of the things Kana was implying, he did catch some of them and was becoming progressively upset. As Kana was more in-tune than he was with social ques, she switched tactics and instead focused on the amount of amusement she could collect from watching his aquatransexualism at work by staging a few 'accidental' spills. She looked a mixture of smug fascination every time she succeeded. By the fourth transformation, Ranma had enough.

"Oh come now, Ranma," Nabiki said trying not to go from stifling giggles to full blown laughter. "Just enjoy your breakfast. I mean it's not like there is anything wrong with being a girl, so no harm done, right?" Ranma was not amused.

"How would _you_ like a thousand worms squirming around beneath your skin? That's about what it feels like every time."

The girls all flinched and a chorus of 'eww's echoed off the walls.

"So, Nabiki," Nemu started, looking desperate for a change of subject. "You and Ranma have your trip to the temple today, right?"

"Yeah, but I don't remember if there was a specific time we were supposed to go. Was there a time on the notice, Reki?"

Reki swallowed a spoonful of breakfast and thought for a moment before answering. "No, but that isn't too surprising. In general they only request we show up, and for us that usually just means we leave not long after breakfast. I guess you could say it is an unspoken rule."

"Sounds good," Nabiki said. "We should probably be going then. Could you tell us how to get there, Nemu?"

Nemu nodded. "I can take you there. The Library is closed today, so I'm not needed there. Just let me get my things." Nemu stood and made her way to the door.

"Hurry up and finish, Ranma. I don't want to spend all day-" Nabiki cut off as she looked down at his bowl and plate. Both were completely devoid of any foodstuffs. "Didn't you just... Never mind. Let's just go."

Ranma looked down to his plate and bowl too. He filled both to capacity only moments ago and ate it all in seconds. _I did it again... At least I'm not still hungry though, so that's a good sign._ Following the other two's example, Ranma stood, placed his dishes on an empty tray, and left the room to wait for the others at the courtyard's exit.

Nabiki breathed deeply. The air was crisp and refreshing, especially as she had barely gone outside since she'd hatched. _Strange to think of it like that; 'hatched'. I came from a cocoon and grew wings. I'd say I'm a bird but I surely can't fly with these. I hope the temple has some answers at least._

A sneeze from her left caught her attention and she looked. Nemu rubbed her nose and sniffled a little. She and Ranma were talking amicably as they walked slightly ahead of her. Since she had no interest in the chit-chat they were having, she looked around.

The road they walked on was hard-packed dirt with a few loose rocks and patches of grass or weed every so often. To her right, it sloped up a little then suddenly became a steep cliffside. To her left it remained level for a good fifteen feet or so then, similar to the right side, dropped steeply for at least fifty feet into a river. They'd been on this type of path for twenty minutes so far and occasionally they passed a tree that grew in the way. The faint roar of a waterfall could be heard ahead, but with the way the road curved she couldn't see it yet. Although not participating in the conversation at all, Nabiki found the walk to be calming and she enjoyed it immensely.

"What kind of place is the Temple?" Ranma's question brought Nabiki back to the conversation. This was a question she'd like to hear the answer to. "Is it filled with a bunch of people like us, only in yellow and red robes?"

"Not at all, Ranma. The Temple houses only a few of the Haibane Renmei. I've only ever met two of them. The Communicator is the only one any of us really know, and that's because we're only allowed to talk to him. Or maybe he's the only one allowed to talk to us, I'm not sure."

Nabiki chose to speak into a small pause in the conversation as Ranma apparently thought on this. "Is it much further? I can hear a waterfall, and those usually are at the end of a path like this, aren't they?"

Nemu turned to address Nabiki while walking backward. This wouldn't be something Nabiki would try, considering how close to a precarious edge they were, but likely Nemu felt safe enough for having been on this route before. That and Ranma walked alongside her, blocking the way to the edge, so Nabiki figured she'd bump into him before she fell off.

"The Temple is just past the waterfall. We will actually take a bridge that goes beneath it, then around a bend and we're there. There is another waterfall past the Temple but I've never checked to see if anything lays beyond it. The path is too narrow. As for the Temple itself, there are a few things you two need to know before we arrive, now that I think about it." She handed a bundle she was carrying off to Ranma.

"Firstly, unless you are given permission, you aren't allowed to speak on Temple grounds."

"WHAT?!" Nabiki was glad that Ranma vocalized what she was feeling while she kept her features schooled as best she could. More would come, she knew.

"Instead," Nemu continued, ignoring Ranma's outburst, "We will be given a set of bells to communicate with. One for each wing and a pair for our hands."

"So, we just jingle the bells like some kind of morse code?" Nabiki asked.

"Not that I know what 'morse code' is, but we will jingle them to communicate if that's what you mean." Nemu raised her right wing. "This is your 'no' wing. When the Communicator asks a question and you want to reply 'no', twitch this wing to make the bell chime. The bells each make a different sound, so it's important to chime the correct one." Nemu repeated the process with her 'yes' wing to the two of them.

"Yes and no," Ranma thought aloud. "The bells in our hands must be 'maybe' then, right?" The look on Ranma's face was almost smug, as though he was proud of himself for figuring something out that no one thought he could. Nabiki laughed when Nemu proved his assumption wrong.

"Not at all. The bells we'll be holding are used to show respect as we greet and leave. There isn't a 'maybe' with the Communicator."

Nabiki thought about that. If everything is black and white with the Communicator, that would make things very difficult to get her questions asked, and it could possibly mean he was rigid and strictly traditional. Nabiki didn't care for tradition much. It felt too confining. If yes and no were her only allowed answers, perhaps she should practice it. She looked over her shoulder and twitched one wing and then the other. It wasn't that difficult for her and after a few times each she felt confident she would be able to do it correctly.

Ranma was having more difficulty. Nabiki could see that he was trying to twitch his wings as well, and that wasn't too surprising, seeing as his much larger wings had been knocking things over at random all morning. The poor guy was a real klutz with those wings. She supposed he just hadn't gotten used to the sensitivity of them, and they were certainly sensitive. If Ranma was going to have more violent twitches at this meeting in the Temple however, Nabiki was looking forward to the show. She imagined how it might play out and smirked to herself. She may not get answers, but hopefully she would get a laugh.

"And that about wraps it up. Any questions? We're nearly there."

Nabiki cursed inwardly. She had stopped paying attention to Nemu's explanation about Temple ettiquet having been distracted by their wings. She was about to ask her to repeat herself but found that 'nearly' in this case literally meant feet away. Nemu stopped just in front of the steps to the Temple's entrance and waited.

Since she knew Ranma was not likely paying attention either she turned in his direction and asked, "Did you get all that, Ran...ko?" She noticed toward the very end that Ranma had at some point turned female again. Her clothes were damp as well. Nabiki looked back on the trail and realized she hadn't noticed that the waterfall had made the bridge they passed under fairly wet. As Ranma had been walking closest to the cliff's edge, he had ended up getting sufficiently wet to trigger his strange change into the busty red-head that was looking up at her.

"Yeah, I got it. Behave myself and don't speak out of turn. I'll make a great first impression or I'm not a guy!" Ranma thumped his chest for emphasis, then looked down after feeling his fist bounce back more than it should have. He looked back at the waterfall and cursed under his breath.

"You're instilling us both with a _lot_ of confidence here, Ranma." Nabiki grinned at him.

Reki stood leaning against the door frame leading out onto the guest room balcony. She was puffing a cigarette and thinking about the morning events. The House Mother was with the Young Feathers while Reki was taking a short break. They were doing some crafts today. Reki idly removed some clay from under a fingernail.

_I hope the old man doesn't scare Nabiki. He can be frustratingly irritating when he wants to be. _Reki thought back to the handful of times she'd been to the Temple to talk to the Communicator. He wasn't as bad as she sometimes felt, she knew that. She just wish he'd be less... enigmatic about things. Kana had a habit of telling the New Feathers about the Communicator's ability to read minds. As plausible as it sounded to anyone who had met him, Reki knew he couldn't actually read your mind. He could, however, read your face and your body language and he had an incredible knack for piecing everything together with scary speed and accuracy. He'd only been wrong in his assumptions once that she'd seen, and in truth was only off by a technicality. Still, it was fun to see the interplay between Kana and the New Feathers, so she didn't bother to correct her when Kana made her claims of the Communicator's 'frightening magic'.

"Hey Reki." _Speak of the devil. _"Have you seen Rakka anywhere?"

"Hikari said she was joining her at the bakery today. They left together quite a while ago. Thinking of, don't you have work today?"

"Nah, Master gives us all Sunday off, so I've just been working on my little pet project. I thought I'd show it to her, but I can show her tomorrow instead I guess. She asked if she could see what it's like at Master's place tomorrow anyway, so I'll show it after that. See ya!" And with that Kana left the room.

Reki looked down into the courtyard below. _I can guess how tomorrow morning will play out. Poor Rakka._ A boyish squeal of delight drew her attention to a door where Daiku had popped out and was playing some kind of keep away game while Hana chased after him, begging for whatever 'it' was back, much to the House Mother's chargrin. Reki sighed. _Time to get back._

Nabiki looked over her shoulder to her wings. Resting upon their peaks were now placed a pair of bells, dangling from a pad of red cloth. The effect was nice, but she had a hunch that balancing them for long periods without some better way of securing them would be difficult. Hopefully this wouldn't take too long _and _she would get some answers. Just as she turned back another bell shot past her face and fell into the gorge along the path to the Temple. Looking to her left she saw Ranma. He had a hand behind his head and was laughing nervously. Apparently when the masked man placed the bell on his wing it twitched violently enough to send the bell flying. It was amusing to watch the man pull out another bell and this time secure it with pins so it wouldn't fly off. _He's patient, this guy. I hope he doesn't have to retrieve the one Ranma flung down there._

With the trio properly decorated, the man turned toward the entrance and began to walk. Since Nemu immediately followed suit, Nabiki headed inside as well, Ranma walking next to her. She wanted to say something, but she wasn't sure if she'd end up teasing him or reassuring him. While this might not have bothered her before, she most importantly wasn't sure talking was allowed now that they had their bells on.

The inside of the Temple was amazing. On the one hand, it was rustic and looked like a ruin. On the other hand though, it was clean and well maintained. There were broken pillars and stonework at odd angles, many with vines and flowers growing on them. However, the overgrowth was well tended and the damaged construction was clean and free of dust. The effect was breath-taking, almost as though the Temple was created specifically to look this way. White and green were everywhere, and a few other colors at random gave it a peaceful natural look. As far as Nabiki was concerned, nature or no, this place was art at it's most fine and yet most natural.

"Haibane." The voice boomed into the room and Nabiki saw Ranma jump at the sudden burst of noise. She couldn't see where it was coming from, but in her searching eyes she noticed the other man had gone. The voice continued to speak.

"Why have you come here?"

Nabiki wasn't sure how to reply to this, so she glanced to Nemu for some kind of que. She just stood there, here eyes squinted like they usually were and a serene smile on her face. As Nemu didn't look concerned, Nabiki wouldn't look concerned either. And so she looked straight ahead and waited for more to be said. The voice did not disappoint and answered it's own question after a few short seconds.

"One is the Haibane returning the Halo Molds. The other two are the ones I sent for. Is this correct?"

Both Nabiki and Ranma turned to look at Nemu when they heard a bell jingle. Nemu's left wing was lowering back into place.

"Very well. Proceed into the Garden."

The trio continued forward to a large door. Nabiki moved with a slight hesitation at first. The voice unnerved her and she didn't like it. She placed a mask of cool indifference over herself and followed the others into the room ahead.

The Garden looked very similar to the room before them, though there was a high ceiling of several stories. It was brightly lit, enough so that it almost looked as though it had no roof to it, and the natural light from outside were doing the job instead. Nabiki bumped into the back of Nemu, who had stopped several feet away from a man in front of them who was slightly hunched over and used a walking stick with a haloed ball with wings on the top. A second man approached Nemu and retrieved the molds from her before walking off to some unknown area of the Temple.

The man, whose masked face revealed nothing about him, looked first toward the redheaded girl. "You are Haibane Ranma, are you not?"

"Yeah, who ar- ow!" Ranma's words were cut off by a brain duster from Nabiki. Forcing herself to concentrate, she very slowly managed to move her yes wing.

"You should endeavor to learn how to move your wings better. Haibane Nemu will teach you after your visit." Ranma blushed in embarrassment. "I am the Communicator." He turned toward Nabiki. "And you must be Haibane Nabiki. Am I right?" Nabiki bounced her yes wing with ease.

"Perhaps young Nabiki here will help you as well." Ranma didn't think he could get redder, but he was quickly proved wrong.

"Haibane Ranma and Nabiki. Though you are still getting used to your new home, I have a task for the two of you to seek out work. The Haibane must work to earn their keep and be good Haibane. Be good Haibane, and take care to be an example to the Young Feathers."

Nemu bowed and turned as though to leave but Nabiki hadn't gotten any answers she needed yet. She was fuming internally and struggling to keep her composure. Finally she could bare it no longer and she spoke up.

"Excuse me," she began. Nemu turned quickly, shock on her face. "You said to be a _good_ Haibane, but what about my wings? Do my black wings mean I'm already _not_ good? Why the hell am I being punished for something I don't even remember doing?!"

The silence was absolute. Nemu approached Nabiki and rested a hand on her arm. They looked at each other. Nemu for a wonder was wide-eyed. Nabiki realized at the end she had very nearly been shouting at the Communicator. _What is wrong with me? I can't have been this quick to temper, can I have? Surely not. I'd rather be in control of a situation, not reacting to it... right?_ Nabiki lowered her head a little and did her best to not looks ashamed of herself. From where she stood, she might have fooled Ranma, but Nemu's look told her she knew.

"Your question is a fair one, Haibane Nabiki, and one with answers that you shall learn in time. I, however, shall not be the one to answer them. Should I do that, you will have learned nothing."

Nabiki stared at him for a moment. _Learn nothing? I'd have learned the answer to my question!_ A moment later she knew that the Communicator was going to say no more on the subject, and so she reluctantly nodded her head.

"Go now," the Communicator said. His voice had not changed much during the entire conversation. Reki was right. He was like a father should be; calm but firm, telling you somethings and allowing you to learn others on your own. He exuded a serene strength that would not easily budge. Nabiki almost missed his next words.

"Haibane Ranma. You will remain here a moment before you join the others."

Nabiki bowed next to Nemu who did likewise and they turned to leave. Nabiki was frustrated. She had been dismissed like a child! As she ruminated over this she realized that to the Renmei, she probably was a child. If this was the relationship between the Renmei and the Haibane, then she could definitely understand Reki's irritation with them. It wasn't until she was almost to the bridge under the waterfall that Nabiki realized just how upset she was. Nemu had called out to her to slow down, and when she turned to look at her she saw Nemu was practically jogging to catch up.

"KAMI that man is annoying!" Nabiki stompped a foot for emphasis. Nemu nodded her agreement.

"Reki says much the same thing every time she returns from the Temple."

"We come here often?!" Nabiki asked incredulously.

"Oh not at all. Reki does though. Most of the time she isn't summoned either, she just comes. You and she have a few things in common."

Nabiki sighed and they stopped walking just after the bridge. She controlled her breathing to calm down and regain her self-control. "How do you deal with him like that?" Her voice still carried tiny amounts of irritation, but it was much better.

"He's not that bad. True he doesn't tell us much, but it's always what we need to know and hear, even if we don't like it. It's his way of helping us grow, I suppose."

"Yeah? Well, his way sucks."

Nemu giggled. "Reki would agree with you. She says the same thing. You two are definitely a lot alike."

"If you say so. Let's just get back home. I need to think so I'm not much in the mood to talk anymore."

"Shouldn't we wait for Ranma though?"

"He's a big boy," Nabiki said with a smirk. "Or girl, depending on the weather. I'm sure he can find his way home. And if he doesn't remember the way it isn't that hard to find if you just follow the trail, right?" Without another word, Nabiki started walking again toward Old Home, with the tiniest concern lacing her thoughts. _I hope so._

Ranma walked slowly down the path away from the Temple. His conversation with the Communicator after Nabiki and Nemu left was... odd. It didn't take long, but it gave him something to think about and he was putting so much into his thoughts that, although he didn't know it, the distance between himself and the other two was widening.

He stopped and leaned on a railing that was set up in a narrow part of the trail, a short distance from where the trail split in two; the one he came from which led upward to the cliff-edge of the gorge they had been traveling on, and the other leading down to the small river that had carved the gorge long ago.

He wasn't sure how long he had been standing there, looking down at the water below but he hadn't moved for so long that the feeling of something landing on his head was a surprise. By the way it shifted and hopped, he could only assume it was a bird. He thought about that.

_Birds have wings too, and they use them easy, right? Why then am I struggling so much? Even Nabiki nabbed it up easily and she's had them as short as I have._ Ranma chuckled to himself. _Nabs... _He shook his head lightly, causing the bird to leap off it's hairy perch and fly the far end of the railing for a new place to preen.

_I know they said it's impossible, but what if I could learn to fly like a bird? I mean, they call that thing at the end of our life here the 'Day of Flight', so maybe it's literal. That'd be amazing._

Ranma pushed himself off and continued walking back to Old Home. His thoughts were occupied with trying to figure out how the birds did it. Try as much as he would, by the time he made it back to Old Home, the only concrete bit of knowledge he had figured out on the subject was that as Nemu worked in a library in town, she'd be the best person to ask. The strain was causing him a headache as he approached the entryway to the courtyard, but the sound of young voices laughing caused a smile to appear on his face, and headache inducing thoughts left him as he looked upon the scene near the courtyard's fountain.

Sprinting around the fountain as quickly as he could was a Young Feather boy Ranma hadn't met yet. He was laughing with pure delight at the chance to play outside. Panting heavily and staggering to try catching him was Nabiki. Not far from the pair was Kuu bounding from child to child, almost catching one, but then not quite making the tag. If Ranma was honest, he thought Kuu was purposely missing. Nabiki on the other hand...

Nabiki was gasping for air when she looked up and noticed Ranma's approach. "What got them all chummy with you, Nabs?"

"When I... got back... They all... crowded... around me... to play." Nabiki continued to gulp air greedily; a testament that she'd either been doing this for quite a while, or that she wasn't used to getting this much exercise. "Reki told them... that my black wings meant..." She paused for a moment as her face changed expression. "Nabs? Where did that come from?"

"I dunno, just seemed to suit you," Ranma replied nonchalantly. "Thought about it on the way home. Don't like it?"

"It's fine, Ranma. Not sure if I like it or not, but I _don't_ like the idea of everyone calling me that, so if you must then let it be between us, okay?" Nabiki was regaining her breath well enough to no longer be gasping.

"So how long have you been 'it'?" Ranma looked around at the rest of the party running around. Kuu had apparently decided to have some fun being the chased and had tagged Daiku, who was chasing her and Hana. Thoughts of why the children had changed their mind from 'monster' to 'playmate' had been forgotten.

"About five minutes; not long. Kuu and I didn't start out as 'it', but I was tagged quickly. I think Kuu let herself be caught before you got here because she can really move."

"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me at all," Ranma said, watching as Kuu grabbed a pillar under the balcony and used it to whip herself into another direction and widening the gap between Daiku, Hana and herself.

"Just what is that supposed to mean?"

Ranma looked back at Nabiki. "Well, doesn't Kuu's name mean 'Air'? It makes sense that she'd move about like the wind around us." The look Nabiki gave made him feel stupid.

"I don't know about that, Ranma. We were mostly named after a dream, not our personalities. If anything, her boundless energy is more likely from that strange coffee this morning." Hearing it from Nabiki, Ranma agreed that made sense too. Nabiki sighed and turned to face the battlefield. Kuu had been tagged again and was chasing Shorta now.

"So, is this tag you are all playing?"

Nabiki wiped her brow before replying. "Sort of. The Young Feathers call it Peanut, though I have no idea why. Instead of one person being it at a time, two of the older Feathers join them as a team of two. The Young Feathers are all a team together, so that's seven this game. They have to tag both of us before we're 'it', and we have to tag all seven of them before they are 'it' again."

Looking out at the chase going on right now, Ranma wasn't sure Kuu was following those rules, but they all still laughed and enjoyed themselves. If Ranma was correct, Kuu had tagged five of the seven quickly and was chasing Daiku again. That little kid was almost as quick as Kuu though, so the other Young Feathers were cheering him on. Then Ranma noticed there were only six of the Young Feathers that he could see. Looking around away from the rest of the group, he found the seventh.

Leaning on a pillar only feet away from Nabiki's unknowing back was Hana. Much like Nabiki had been, she was out of breath, and trying to catch it again. It was almost too cute to stop, but since everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves...

Ranma leaned in slightly towards Nabiki, who arched an eyebrow at his sudden entry into her personal space. "Just on the other side of the pillar behind your right is one who hasn't been caught yet. Move quickly and you'll get her," Ranma whispered.

Nabiki nodded and quickly turned away to lunge at Hana. Ranma thought it might be good for her to relax soon. _The exertion must be getting to Nabiki. Her face was starting to go red. _Tired though Nabiki might be, Ranma was rewarded for his tip with a scene in which Hana, surprised at the sudden movement tripped and fell in her attempts to get away. She squealed as Nabiki caught her. The noise was enough to distract Daiku momentarily and Kuu capitalized on it, scooping him up. She spun him around and around and though his capture meant the loss of the game he still laughed at the pure joy of play.

Kuu set Daiku back on the ground and he staggered around dizzily. Ranma thought it looked hilarious, as though he was a tiny drunk. When Daiku tripped and fell into the fountain, it became more serious, but no less funny. Ranma stepped up to the fountain to help him out.

"Hey, are you-" a splash of water caught him full in the face, and he finished his sentence in a higher, girly pitch. "...okay?" Instead of reaching a hand out to him or picking himself up out of the fountain like Ranma had expected, Daiku had cupped his hands in the water at his approach and deliberately doused the now boy-turned girl when Ranma reached out for him. Now standing as a busty red haired version of himself, Ranma looked flatly at Daiku who was gaping at him.

"Whoa! Hana wasn't lying. He _does_ turn into a girl!" The other Young Feathers proceeded to swarm around him, exclaiming their excitement and falling over each other trying to ask questions. Hana, Ranma could see, was still next to Nabiki. Although Nabiki looked highly amused, Hana looked almost horror-struck. At the call for hot water by one of the boys who wanted to see the change happen again, Ranma groaned. _This is going to be a long day._

Hana sat by herself with her knees pulled up in a hallway. She was at the same time glad that finally the other Young Feathers believed her, since they'd seen it for themselves, and upset with worry. Big sister-brother Ranma didn't look like he enjoyed the sudden attention from the other Feathers her age, and she worried that he was upset with her. While he was surrounded he looked at her for a moment. Hana didn't know if it was true of him or not, but had it been herself there she would have been upset at all the attention. When their eyes met he immediately looked away from her. She just knew he was angry with her. She was the oldest of the Young Feathers, and it was hurting her chest so much to think that the first time she gets to have an older brother she made him mad at her. Her worries fed on each other to the point she had been crying over the fear for several minutes.

So focused on her emotions she didn't hear footsteps approaching. To be fair, they weren't the footsteps of shoes like she usually heard. These ones were soft and muffled with cloth. When she felt a thump next to her she looked up to find the cause. Ranma had just sat down next to her!

"Hey, Hana," Ranma said nervously. "Are you okay?"

Hana wiped tears from her face and took a deep breath. Hikari often told her that you needed to be brave to face your fears. Since her current fears were now sitting next to her, she did her best to put on a brave face.

"Yeah, Ranma. I'm fine." Her voice shook as she spoke. There was no way she was convincing anyone that she was actually fi-

"Oh, that's good then." Hana looked up at him surprised. He seemed relieved, but still nervous. What did he have to be nervous about?

The sound of a voice clearing itself down the hallway had them both look to it's source. Big sister Nabiki stood at a corner of the hall, making hand gestures to encourage big sister-brother Ranma. _So that's what this is? _She wasn't sure if she felt happy or not about Ranma being forced to talk to her. These days her feelings were getting more and more difficult to understand, let alone control.

"Um," Ranma started again. "You uh, you don't _sound_ fine. Want to talk about it?"

Hana shook her head sadly and looked away. "You don't have to force yourself to talk to me, Ranma. I know you don't want to." She felt warmth land on her head and looked up to see the fingertips of big sister-brother Ranma's hand reaching over her bangs. She looked up at him questioningly.

"Hey, it's not that I don't _want _to talk to my little sister." Ranma said with a still slightly nervous grin. "I just don't really know how to talk to any girl that's upset."

"Did Nabiki force you to do something you didn't want to do?" Hana could feel her emotions rising again in a torrent she couldn't control. "I'm sorry for being a pain, Ranma!" Hana broke down into tears again. Unbeknownst to her, Ranma looked back to Nabiki for help. Understanding her gestures correctly, Ranma acted and Hana felt Ranma's arms reach around to give her a warm, if awkward hug.

"Nah, no one forces me to do anything. Nabiki said you ran off crying. I was worried about you, but I don't know why you are upset. I asked her and she said to talk to you about it. I still don't know what to say though."

_So he wasn't forced, but isn't he mad at me?_ Hana sniffled a little then looked back up at him. Or at least, she tried to. Big sister-brother's arms were too strong and firmly placed to allow much movement and she realized that breathing was getting hard through his shirt. She struggled and pushed at him a little. Thankfully he understood and released her head. With a nervous laugh and a hand behind his head he looked away and apologized.

"Ranma," Hana started and saw that his name made him flinch slightly. "Ranma aren't you mad at me? I told everyone in class about you turning into a girl. No one believed me and they said I was lying, so I told them about the water making it happen." She began to sniffle again. "I just didn't want to be called a liar and I spilled your secret and then they all mobbed you and you were standing there looking like you didn't want to have all the questions and I thought, 'I'd be mad if it was me' and-"

"Slow down, Hana. You'll run out of air and start gasping if you don't." Hana took a deep breath and looked better for it.

"You looked mad and turned away when I looked at you. Doesn't that mean you are mad at me?"

Ranma looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Nah, I'm not mad. I looked away because one of the boys bumped into my butt." Hana saw Nabiki down the hall facepalm. She herself thought it was a little funny.

"So, you aren't mad at me?"

Ranma ruffled her hair a little.

"Nope! I know I suck at talking with others, I've already been told that. But I'm not mad at you. It's not like my condition is something I can hide for long. They'd have learned eventually. And really, how could I stay mad at my cute little sister? That is, if you still want me to be your big brother?" He looked down at her a little hopefully.

Hana felt happier than she had all day. After being upset to be called out for fibbing and then being outted as a tattle-tale and believing for half an hour that she had lost her only big brother, to know that after all that had happened her big sister-brother didn't hate her pushed her feelings into overdrive and she hugged him tightly, crying into his shirt.

Ranma looked over to Nabiki for another hint on what to do. When she had told him that he was the reason Hana took off running and he needed to talk to her he asked for her help. He had no clue why Hana was upset, so Nabiki agreed to help him from a distance if he needed it. A little nudge here and there during the conversation with Hana had proven useful, but he knew he'd put his foot in his mouth this time. Hana was sobbing into his chest harder than anytime in the last several minutes and he wasn't sure where he went wrong.

So, he had looked to Nabiki to lend her help again. What he got instead was an amused smile and a thumbs up. He scowled at her and was considering what he was going to do next when he heard a tiny voice from his chest.

"Thank you."

Ranma looked down and saw Hana was settling down. She squeaked again, a little voice raw with emotion and the strain of many minutes of vocalizing her pain and, though Ranma hadn't caught on until she spoke, happiness.

"Thank you for not hating me, big sister-brother."

Ranma smiled. He hadn't liked it at first, being called that. But hearing Hana call him by name earlier had hurt just a little bit inside. Between having Hana call him this nickname or his given name, he preferred the nickname.

Nabiki grinned at the scene. Ranma, being fiercely hugged by a happy little girl and being clueless as to why was immensely entertaining. When he looked to her with a face that clearly said, 'help me out', she couldn't help herself and just gave him a cheeky thumbs up. When Ranma turned his head down she noticed that Hana had spoken, but couldn't make out what was being said at this distance. She was able to catch Ranma's reply to it, which to her surprise came after he wrapped his harms around her like an older brother comforting a distraught little sister.

"I'll always be your big sister-brother. Always."

_**Author's Notes**_

Three in three days. Granted these ones were all prepared before posting, only going over a few last minute revisions. There will be more delay from here, but I will try to update at least once a week. If it is longer, take comfort that I want to deliver the best I can give. (Standard Disclaimers of ownership apply)


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